Assembly polls out of the way, J&K L-G says panchayat elections ‘after weather improves’

Last month, J&K Assembly elections were held after a decade and NC’s Omar Abdullah took oath as the CM.

Referring to former sarpanches, he said, “I want to say certainly one thing that panchayat elections should have been held here, but there was a constitutional difficulty.”

He added that there was no reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the local bodies. “Due to it, the Act (J&K Panchayati Raj Act) had to be amended, which was done by the Parliament,’’ he said.

This cleared the way for holding panchayat elections, but then came the Lok Sabha and the Assembly elections, he said.

The L-G also reiterated his commitment to protect the rights of the displaced families from Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), West Pakistan Refugees, tribals, Valmikis and other deprived sections who benefited from the abrogation of Article 370.

“Empowering J&K’s farmers is my mission for which we have taken strategic steps to accelerate transformation in agriculture and allied sectors. We will ensure that the youth in the rural areas get equal opportunities to shine,” Sinha said.

The State Election Commission has already initiated the process for holding panchayat polls by publishing draft electoral rolls on November 11. The state poll body also said that voters can request additions, deletions and corrections until December 9, for which special camps will be organised at polling locations on Saturdays and Sundays. Panchayat election booth and Assembly booth-level officials will help voters with the forms and guide them on the draft rolls. All claims and objections will be settled by December 23 and final electoral rolls published on January 6, 2025, the sources said.

The five-year term of all 4,291 village panchayats ended on January 9 this year, following which the disbursal of Rs 25 lakh panchayat fund also ceased to exist.

-With PTI inputs