Boycott bastions of Baramulla, Sopore see highest voter turnout in 30 yrs

The third and final phase of Jammu and Kashmir assembly polls on Tuesday saw a voter turnout of 68.72 percent, surpassing the Lok Sabha poll figure in the corresponding seven districts, with the traditional boycott bastions of Sopore and Baramulla recording the highest turnout in an election in the last three decades.

According to Election Commission data, the overall polling percentage in the three phases was 63.45 percent.

Officials said the polling went off peacefully in all segments including special polling stations along the International Border and Line of Control (LoC) with no untoward incident reported from anywhere.

\In the recently held parliamentary polls, the turnout in the seven districts that went to polls in the final phase on Tuesday was recorded at 66.78 percent.

The turnout in Phases 1 and 2 was also higher than in the Lok Sabha elections.

While seven districts in Phase 1 recorded 61.38 percent turnout, the figure was 60 percent in the general elections.

Similarly, six districts that went to polls in Phase 2 recorded 57.31 percent polling as compared to 52.17 percent turnout in the Lok Sabha polls, according to available data.

However, as compared to the 2014 Assembly elections, the third phase of polls in 40 assembly segments across seven districts of Jammu, Udhampur, Kathua and Samba in Jammu region and Baramulla, Bandipora and Kupwara in north Kashmir recorded a marked dip in the overall percentage which was attributed mostly to the ongoing farming activities.

The majority of seats in the third phase registered a drop of 1 to 15 percent as compared to 2014 except for Sopore, Baramulla, and Pattan constituencies where the figures have gone up this time.

Sopore, once a terrorist and separatist stronghold, recorded the lowest turnout of 41.44 percent but it was far better than the 2014 polls when the seat recorded 30.79 percent voting, the EC data showed.

Baramulla, a traditional boycott bastion, recorded a 47.95 percent turnout as against 39.73 percent in 2014 while Pattan saw 60.87 percent polling in comparison to 58.72 percent recorded in the last assembly polls.

According to Election Commission data, an estimated 68.72 percent of over 39.18 lakh eligible voters exercised their franchise in the final phase of the elections.

The poll panel, however, termed it an "approximate trend" as it did not include postal ballots while the data from some polling stations was still being compiled.

The polling began at 7 am amid tight security and concluded at 6 pm, sealing the fate of 415 candidates, including two former deputy chief ministers Tara Chand and Muzaffar Baig, and several former ministers and legislators.

The votes will be counted on October 8.

Long queues outside polling stations since early morning marked the enthusiasm among people who voted for the first time in the assembly elections post the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.

Samba district recorded the highest turnout of 73.45 percent, followed by Udhampur (72.91 percent), Kathua (70.53 percent), Jammu (66.79 percent), Bandipora (64.85 percent), Kupwara (62.76 percent), and Baramulla (55.73 percent).

Among the constituencies, Chhamb in Jammu district was at the top with 77.35 percent polling recorded in the day-long polling.

In Jammu district's 11 segments, Bishnah (SC) recorded 72.75 percent polling, Suchetgarh (SC) 68.02 percent, R S Pura-Jammu South 61.65 percent, Bahu 57.07 percent, Jammu East 60.21 percent, Nagrota 72.94 percent, Jammu West 56.31 percent, and Jammu North 60.79 percent, Akhnoor (SC) 76.28 percent, Marh (SC) 76.10 percent and Chhamb 77.35 percent.

In the six seats of Kathua district, Bani recorded 71.24 percent voter turnout, Billawar 69.64 percent, Basohli 67.24 percent, Jasrota 71.79 percent, Kathua (SC) 71.49 percent and Hiranagar 71.18 percent.

In Udhampur district's four segments, Udhampur West recorded 73.20 percent, Udhampur East 74.07 percent, Chenani 73.79 percent and Ramnagar (SC) 70.38 percent polling.

In the three seats of Samba district, Ramgarh (SC) recorded 73.10 percent polling, Samba 71.16 percent and Vijaypur 73.05 percent.

In Baramulla district's seven seats, Sopore recorded 41.44 percent, Rafiabad 58.39 percent, Uri 64.81 percent, Baramulla 47.95 percent, Gulmarg 64.19 percent, Wagoora-Kreeri 56.43 percent and Pattan 60.87 percent.

In the six seats of Kupwara district, Karnah registered 66.30 percent, Tregham 62.27 percent, Kupwara 59.68 percent, Lolab 61.22 percent, Handwara 69.06 percent and Langate 59.81 percent.

In the three seats of Bandipora district, Sonawari registered 65.56 percent, Bandipora 62.0 percent and Gurez (ST) 75.89 percent.

Having gained voting rights for the first time following the abrogation of Article 370, enthusiastic West Pakistani refugees, Valmiki Samaj and Gorkha community members thronged polling stations in the early hours to take part in the ‘festival of democracy'.

They had previously participated in the Block Development Council and the District Development Council polls in 2019 and 2020, respectively.

More than 400 companies of security forces, including paramilitary and armed police personnel, have been deployed to ensure smooth voting.

"J&K assembly elections have marked a significant deepening of democracy which will echo in the pages of history and continue to inspire a democratic spirit of the region for years to come," Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said in a statement.

He dedicated the elections to the people of Jammu and Kashmir acknowledging their determination and belief in the democratic process.

"The peaceful and participative elections are historic, wherein democracy is taking root more profoundly than ever before, driven by the will of people of J&K," he said.

The commission said meticulous planning and constant vigil by the Commission have ensured that the elections this time have been smooth and streamlined, with no repolls recorded so far.

"Despite an increase in the number of Assembly constituencies from 83 in 2014 to 90 in 2024, the elections were completed in three phases this time as against five phases in 2014.

"No major law and order incidents related to the election were reported, a significant improvement from 2014 when over 170 incidents were reported, including 87 on polling days," the commission said.

It said there have been no complaints pertaining to arbitrary preventive detention of political functionaries in these elections which is unprecedented.

The commission had also strictly instructed against clubbing of polling stations just before the poll day, and accordingly, voters voted at their actual polling station location as opposed to 98 polling stations shifted in 2014 at the eleventh hour.

The role of money and muscle power has been curtailed to a significant extent. Vigilance and seizures have been fortified by the coordinated efforts of the enforcement agencies resulting in seizures worth Rs 130 crores, the highest ever in the history of Jammu and Kashmir elections and even surpassing Rs 100.94 crore figure during Lok Sabha Elections 2024.

The bulk of seizures included drugs worth Rs 110.45 crore, the commission said.