Emotive issues dominate election scene in J&K

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir sends just six MPs to the Lok Sabha and therefore, the national political parties have shown only a marginal interest in the state in the past elections. But this time it’s a different story altogether.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its arch rival Congress in particular have taken the fight to new heights in the state. What is more, Kashmir and related issues are being debated vigorously by the leaders of major parties as they campaign elsewhere in the country. No less a person than Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has repeatedly mentioned his government’s policies and actions vis-a-vis J&K in order to win over voters.

Back in the state, emotive issues have dominated the election scene. Controversial political issues also run the gamut. The concerns regarding economy, development, health, education and unemployment have taken a backseat or are talked about aloofly and only by a few people.

Abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A has been the BJP’s main election plank. Its leaders are promising the voters — mainly those in predominantly Hindu Jammu region — that these two constitutional provisions will definitely go if the party is voted to power again. In fact, BJP’s manifesto says that the party is committed to abrogating both these articles as they are stumbling blocks in J&K’s integration with the country and discriminatory against non-permanent residents and women of the state.

On the other hand, Congress, National Conference (NC) and People's Democratic Party (PDP) are vowing to defend these to the last drop of their blood. “BJP can’t abrogate it (Article 370) even if they rule the country for 200 years. Congress won’t allow anyone to touch the Article till the party exists in India,” said senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad while speaking at an election rally in Anantnag.

The BJP is also consistently invoking the Balakot airstrike to woo the voters of Jammu region. It is, however, silent on these issues in the Muslim-majority Kashmir Valley for obvious reasons but does talk mainly about the “urgency” of putting an end to “political exploitation” of the people by the Abdullah and Mufti families and bring about “positive changes” in the lives of the people.

Conversely, the NC and the PDP have taken the issues related to the state’s special status to the extreme level. They are constantly threatening that the relationship between J&K and the rest of the country will come to an end if Article 370 is scrapped. While the BJP is telling the people that nobody can dilute Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act as the party will be standing like a rock in support of security forces, the NC and the PDP are promising to get the people rid of this “repressive law”. The NC is promising to get back executive posts of Sadr-e-Riyasat and Prime Minister to the state, only to be ridiculed by the BJP which termed it “daydreaming”.

The NC, PDP and like-minded parties and their leaders are seeking ouster of the Modi government for its “tacit promotion of sectarian politics” and “persecution” of Muslims and other minorities across the country, an end to human rights violations in J&K and harassment of Kashmiris by government agencies and resumption of peace talks with Pakistan.

The Congress is asking for votes in the name of throwing out “non-performing and corrupt” Modi government which it holds responsible for “deteriorating security situation” and “disturbing trends of intolerance, and incidents of crimes propelled by hate groups patronised by the BJP and its government in the country”.