National Conference vice-president Omar Abdullah Sunday favoured early assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir and expressed hope that the people of the state will give mandate for a single-party rule instead of a coalition government as has been witnessed since 2002.
In an interview to PTI, the former chief minister said thestate assembly election can be held in a three-to-five week period soon afterthe LokSabha polls are over as adequate security forces will be available.
The final phase of LokSabha election is on May 19 and thecounting of votes is on May 23.
“We definitely have a window (after the LokSabha polls andbefore amarnathyatra). It is possible to hold assembly elections in J&Kover a three-to-five-week period. You can start with the last couple of phasesof parliament elections, if you like. Then you have the entire month of June tohave elections,” Omar said.
Omar said he had no reason to believe that electioncommission was not looking at the possibility of conducting the assemblyelection in the state at the earliest. He, however, said there should not beany delay in polls due to amarnathyatra, which starts from the first week ofJuly, as the annual pilgrimage to the cave shrine in southern Kashmir Himalayasis limited to two assembly segments.
“If (Muslim fasting month of) Ramzazn is not a hindrance toparliament elections, why is amarnathyatra a hindrance to assembly elections?Amarnathyatra takes place in two districts—Anantnag and Ganderbal. Technically,it is only in two constituencies—Pahalgam and Kangan,” Omar said.
He said the assembly elections can be scheduled in such away that the polls finish with these two constituencies either before the yatraor immediately after the yatra.
“There will be no security forces required anywhere else inthe country once parliament elections are over. You put extra forces here,” hesaid. He said any such reason to delay elections “will just be an excuse fromthose people who are trying to hold on to power in Jammu and Kashmir ratherthan transfer power back to the people”. “I won’t presume as to what electioncommission is doing. I have no reason as of now to believe that electioncommission is not seriously looking at this (holding early elections). Theelection observers are coming to the state again. They had a series ofdiscussions in the Centre. Let’s see what they decide,” he added.
Asked if he is expecting a groundswell of support for theNational Conference after the troubled PDP-BJP coalition rule, Omar said: “Idon’t predict waves. I think predicting waves is a sure shot way of causingdamage to oneself in elections. Theworst thing you can do in an election is to convey to the voters that you aretaking them for granted”.
He said the voters across the country in general, and Jammuand Kashmir in particular, do not make up their mind that early.
“We have to work hard and we have to convince the people whythey should vote for us. We have to convince people why their votes in 2014were an error in judgement that have cost the state dearly and hope that thepeople will support us,” he said.
Omar, who has maintained that NC will contest all 87 seatsof the state assembly whenever the polls are held, expressed the hope thatpeople of the state will give majority to a single party
“I would like to believe people of Jammu and Kashmir are fedup of alliance governments and this time will vote a single party to power.That is what we are working for,” he said.
From 2002 to 2008, a PDP-Congress coalition was in power, while an NC-Congress alliance government was formed in 2009. In 2015, the PDP and the BJP formed a post-poll alliance which collapsed last year. Asked if the NC will go for a post-poll alliance in case of a hung verdict, Omar said this was a hypothetical situation. “Other states have also passed through a phase of coalitions and come out of it.
In UP, at one point of time people believed that a single party government will never reemerge and that UP had got so divided. It was famously said about UP that you don’t cast your vote, you vote your caste. Then you had AkhileshYadav (Samajwadi Party) with single party government and now you have Adityanath (BJP) with a single party government. Why not in Jammu and Kashmir? Why are we assuming that people of Jammu and Kashmir have decided to vote for coalition in perpetuity,” the NC leader added.