Kashmir hopes for a voice for its woes after election

A constant flow of voters enter a voting booth in Shopian, which was once a center of militancy, nestled in the hills of Indian-administered Kashmir.

The former state of Jammu and Kashmir – now divided into two federally administered territories – is holding its first assembly election in a decade. The third and last phase of voting is on Tuesday and results will be declared on 8 October.

An armed dissident rebellion against Indian rule in the area has claimed thousands of lives since the 1990s, including those of citizens and security personnel.

Separatists saw polls as a way for Delhi to try and legitify its power in earlier years, which caused violence and boycotts and electoral irregularities. People around claim to have waited long to get heard, and the higher voter turnout then indicates a change.

” The level of hunger in our place is severe”, says 52-year-old Mohammad Yusuf Ganai after casting his vote. He laments that fresh Kashmiris who lack education are now forced to” sit at home.”

The last elections a decade ago resulted in a coalition government that collapsed in 2018. Before new polls could be held, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government revoked the region’s autonomy and statehood, sparking widespread discontent among Kashmiris.

For five decades, Jammu and Kashmir has been under national control with no regional picture, and this vote offers individuals a long-awaited opportunity to voice their concerns.

” We will finally be able to go to the elected established with our issues”, says 65-year-old Mohammad Abdul Dar.

Nearly 150km (93 miles) away in Uri, the last town near the Line of Control – the de facto border with Pakistan-administered Kashmir – newly elected MP from the Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) Engineer Rashid addresses a frenzied crowd. In jail since 2019 on terror funding charges that he denies, Rashid was granted interim bail to campaign for the election.

People flock to his parade, one seeking a picture, another offering a coat, as Rashid’s specific challenges appear to resonate greatly with citizens.

According to Rashid,” I want a solution to the Jammu and Kashmir problem and creation.” Being part of the system then as a senator, he adds, may help him increase these problems in Delhi.

Civil expert Tanvir Chalkoo, 29, listens attentively to Rashid.

Tanvir asks why he should be treated any differently as an Indian when he calls the repeal of freedom the “worst sort of injustice”.

” People have been deprived of their freedom for the last 10 times”, he says.

Prime Minister Modi announced$ 700 million ( £523 million ) in projects during a visit to the region in March, despite the BJP government’s claim that removing the region’s special status and bringing it under direct rule has brought peace and development. Engineer Aijaz Hussain, the BJP prospect, will now have to persuade voters in Srinagar’s Lal Chowk to persuade them of this information.

” Formerly, no one would go door to door]to campaign]. Nowadays, they are. This is our achievement, is n’t it”? says Aijaz.

He points to the increase in voter participation as evidence of trust in the electoral process, which saw record-breaking participation in the most recent legislative elections. Despite these says, the BJP has not yet contested those elections and is only today fielding candidates in 19 of the 47 council seats in the Kashmir valley.

The group’s stronghold remains the Hindu-dominated Jammu area with 43 tickets, where it is hoping to score well.

” Our company is weak in different divisions”, admits Aijaz.

The Hindu republican BJP has been trying to gain traction in Kashmir’s Muslim-majority region, but it has had much success there.

Aijaz’s bevy of roughly 50 BJP-flagged vehicles drove through Srinagar’s narrow roads, a show of strength unbelievable in Kashmir just a few years ago.

While some come out of their houses to invite Aijaz with sweets, some stop. Many people still think of the BJP as the group in Delhi that revoked their independence.

Maleha Sofi, 24, is disillusioned with the BJP, believing the lauded peace has come at the cost of individual rights, and has decided not to voting. ” We are never allowed to say anything”, she says.

Legacy parties like the People’s Democratic Party ( PDP ) have made this central to their campaign.

” This vote is an act of self-preservation for Kashmiris”, says Waheed Para, the party’s candidate from Pulwama. It’s a move toward restoring what was lost and keeping what we have, the author says.

In 2020, Para was jailed for nearly two years, accused of aiding banned dissident parties. India has long been accused of violating Kashmir’s animal rights, but it denies it, and its critics claim that this has grown in recent years.

Amnesty International criticized the government for creating a” weather of fear” ahead of the assembly election and called for the end to arbitrary punishments in line with strict anti-terror rules used to stifle opposition in Jammu and Kashmir.

However, Delhi’s BJP government has often taken a harsh stance in this regard. According to Aijaz,” all those who are with separatists may be dealt with pretty seriously.”

How much of an impact did regional political parties have following these elections, despite promising to change and asserting that they are fighting for Kashmiris ‘ rights?

Lawyer Zafar Shah anticipates conflict between the elected authorities and the federal presidency, which will quickly take over.

Before 2019, when Jammu and Kashmir was a position, the deputy secretary could enact rules with the acceptance of the governor, who was bound by the state commission’s tips.

Now, as a federal territory under a Lieutenant Governor ( LG), the chief minister must get the LG’s approval, especially on sensitive issues like public order, appointments and prosecutions. Power has shifted, says Mr Shah, as the LG wo n’t act without clearance from the federal home ministry.

” Whether the LG can create barriers in the administration’s acting, that’s a topic to be seen when an actual circumstance arises”, adds Mr Shah.

Some Kashmiris hope that these elections will give them a chance to finally have their own members to voice their concerns despite the difficulties.