Breaking Barriers to Build New Bridges

The winds of change were evident when I visited the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir during the District Development Council (DDC) polls. Even though the public were upbeat about the democratic process, the Gupkar Alliance had tried to cast doubt in people’s minds. After the Panchayat, Block and Municipal elections, it was clear that stopping the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from creating its base in the Valley was the key objective behind the opportunistic alliance. When the results for DDC polls were declared, BJP not just registered its victory by winning three seats in the Valley but emerged as the single largest party netting highest number of votes.

BJP won three seats in three different districts of the Valley in DDC polls. Aijaz Hussain, Aijaz Ahmad Khan and Minha Lateef won from Khonmoh-II seat in Srinagar, Tulail seat in Bandipora district and Kakpora in Pulwama, respectively.

The victory is significant as most of the political parties in J&K were fighting together against the Saffron party. Despite its best efforts, they failed to halt the march of BJP in the Kashmir Valley. The sign is clear that the BJP has started making inroads where it has been considered unsurmountable.

BJP bagged 75 seats in the DDC elections, while the Gupkar Alliance has managed to win 112. This was the first democratic exercise of this scale in J&K post the abrogation of Article 370 and bifurcation of the erstwhile state into two Union Territories last year.

Not only it’s a good sign for the party in J&K, but it’s also good for Modi-led BJP Government at the Centre as the government faced the angst of a section of the society for abrogating Article 370 and 35A from J&K. The government has managed to hold DDC polls peacefully is another feather in its cap.

BJP candidate Aijaz Hussain who won the Khonmoh-II seat credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s policies and hard work of party members for his success.

“This is a win for the BJP. The propaganda has been busted as people have shown their faith in Prime Minister Modi and his policies. This is a message that nationalists are prospering in Kashmir. People want development, and this is a vote for development,” he said.

The newly-carved Union Territory witnessed a massive participation of voters of all age-groups in first-ever DDC polls post-revocation of Article 370 and 35A. No killings, bandh, boycott, curfew, hurling of bomb at polling booths, and stone-pelting incidents during the polls; people and leaders see it as a ‘winds of change’ as people choose ‘ballot over bullet’. Endorsing this view, a Kashmiri youth Ajmal says, “Bandh, boycott and stone-pelting during polls is a thing of past in Jammu & Kashmir.” According to him, earlier, it was a daily affair. “I will not say that everything is well and good after the abrogation of 370 and 35A in J&K especially Kashmir, but yes things are changing and one can witness this winds of change in the Valley,” he added.

Amid freezing weather, voters turned up in large numbers to vote at their respective polling stations. Women, youth and elderly voters were seen waiting in long queues for their turn. At some places, voters as old as hundred years were seen casting their votes.

The newly-carved Union Territory of J&K witnessed a massive participation of voters of all age-groups in first-ever DDC polls post-revocation of Article 370 and 35A. No killings, bandhs, boycott, curfew, hurling of bombs at polling booths, and stone-pelting incidents were reported

Initially, Kashmir-based political parties PDP and NC said that they would not participate in the democratic process until the ‘special status’ is reinstated, but later they sensed the public mood and changed their stance.

Much to the surprise, the Kashmir division has witnessed highest ever turnout in the last three decades in the first-ever election to the DDC post-abrogation of Article 370 and 35A.

“Frankly speaking, I was stunned to see such a huge response from all sections of the society in the electoral process. People, whether old or young, women or men all participated with enthusiasm. Even in South Kashmir, which is considered the hub of separatism, witnessed a good voting percentage compared to the previous elections, including Panchayat polls of 2018 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls,” said a senior officer in Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Service.

“Notably this is the first time DDC elections happened in J&K after the Centre amended the J&K Panchayat Raj Act 1989. For the first time in my whole career, there was no curfew in Srinagar even in Downtown, a sensitive place from a law-and-order perspective. Even South Kashmir didn’t witness any curfew during the polls,” he said.

BJP General Secretary Ashok Kaul sharing his political campaign experience in Kashmir said, “We have done gathering of 300 to 400 people in Kashmir. The youth are welcoming us with open hands and joining the party, which is a good thing. They are realising the importance of abrogating Article 370 and 35 A. They know that BJP is the only party which can take J&K on the path of development. They have realised that NC-PDP not only looted the money send by the Union governments for the betterment of Kashmir but also destroyed their future by putting stone and guns in their hands”.

With the BJP getting its first electoral victories in the Valley, there appears to be a slow but tangible shift in the political dynamics of J&K.