Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir to hold first local election in a decade

ANANTNAG, Kashmir: For the past five years, the people of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir have not had a directly elected representative at the local level.
And for the past decade, they have not had local elections at all.
Now, residents are gearing up to vote for the first time in 10 years in regional elections held over three phases – Sep 18 and 25, and Oct 1.
The region has been notorious for low voter turnouts in previous polls. But this time, locals are expected to flock to the ballot boxes in large numbers in hopes of electing representatives who will make their voices heard.
Residents have a laundry list of hot button issues – from better jobs and business opportunities to measures to lower the cost of living.
But with Kashmir being one of the most militarised regions in the world, political stability and relief from a perpetual threat of violence are the main demands of most voters.
“Now the government is moving more security into Kashmir for the elections. People are being suffocated and they don’t know the issues they should talk about. What can we talk about safely?” asked Kashmiri local Junaid Rasool.
Fellow resident Amir Iqbal said the youths are concerned about unemployment, inflation and a lack of basic facilities, but lamented “there’s no one to listen to us”.
The elections will be the first since the region lost its autonomy and statehood in 2019.
The erstwhile state’s legislature was dissolved after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government stripped it of its autonomy and split the region into three, effectively putting the territory under direct control of the federal government in New Delhi.
The border province is of immense strategic importance to New Delhi, with parts of it claimed by India, Pakistan and China – making it one of the most contested regions in South Asia.
Jammu and Kashmir has for decades witnessed an armed insurgency against Indian rule.
New Delhi blames neighbouring Pakistan for supporting separatists and sending terrorists into the region to fuel unrest – a charge Islamabad denies.
Both India and Pakistan govern parts of the wider Kashmir region.
After its special status was revoked in 2019, the Indian government said unrest was brought under control and the area has since seen more development.
However, skirmishes between militants and the Indian army continue, with at least two reported last weekend.
On the face of it, the election is a two-way contest between Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and a coalition of national and regional opposition parties called the INDIA bloc.
But a closer look reveals how significant local players are.
The BJP is fielding candidates for 59 out of the 90 assembly seats up for grabs – mostly in Hindu-majority areas. This is despite Interior Minister Amit Shah saying earlier that the party would contest all the seats in the region.
Reports said the ruling party is also supporting many independent contestants. 
Before revoking the region’s autonomy, the BJP was in power by extending support to a regional party.
The main federal opposition Congress party is teaming up with long-time regional partner National Conference.
There are at least three other local parties hoping to secure enough seats to have a say in policy making.
One of the core issues on voters’ – as well politicians’ – minds is the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.
The section of the Indian constitution gave Kashmir autonomy over the state’s domestic affairs, while in other Indian states these powers are shared with the federal government.
These powers – or what some have called “preferential treatment” – was one of the preconditions on which the erstwhile kingdom of Jammu and Kashmir joined the Indian state in 1947 when the country got independence from British colonial rule.
Though these special rights were watered down several times in the past seven decades, a complete removal of Article 370 was a key poll plank of Modi’s BJP for years.
When it was finally carried out, Modi’s supporters said it would finally help integrate the region with the rest of India.
However, critics called it an anti-democratic exercise targeting the Muslim-majority region.
Following the revocation of Kashmir’s special status – nearly all of Kashmir’s biggest political players were either detained or put under house arrest for months.
An internet blackout was imposed for 18 months, which the Indian government said was necessary to prevent rebels from organising attacks and protests. 
In getting rid of Article 370, Jammu and Kashmir’s state legislature was also dissolved. The region was then divided into three union territories, or federally controlled regions.
The BJP said the move has helped restore normalcy in the area, but locals disagree.
The ruling party has long claimed that Jammu and Kashmir’s special privileges fuelled unrest in the region and held the state’s economic progress back.
“Back then, militants used to publish calendars to say businesses would only operate for five days in the entire month. Schools, colleges, all would remain closed for 25 days a month,” said Rafiq Wani, the BJP candidate for Anantnag West.
“In these five years, there’s been development here and peace has prevailed. Today, kids are going to school, workers are off to work in cities. They used to worry whether they’ll make it back home in the night because there used to be frequent bomb blasts.”
Wani said he is the only BJP candidate with a real shot at winning a seat for the party from the Kashmir valley, where the party has traditionally not enjoyed any support. This is despite Modi claiming that Kashmiris supported the revocation of Article 370.
Of the 47 seats in the region, the BJP is only contesting 19.
Wani said that if BJP wins the election, it will reinstate Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood.
The Modi government further said only it can grant Jammu and Kashmir full statehood and is urging locals to vote for the ruling party.
Other political parties are also calling for the region’s statehood to be restored, which will grant it better access to funds, independence in policy making and pursuing its own direction.
Locals said that while the elections are a welcome democratic exercise, reinstating the region’s statehood is what the people of Kashmir really want and the only way to truly bring normalcy back.