After a delay of one-and half-years, the Jammu and Kashmir government has written to the State Election Commission to hold panchayat elections in the state.
The move has come after the government completed most formalities for holding the polls that include publication of electoral rolls, notification of reserved wards, polling stations and the deployment of staff. Through Rural Development Department, which acts as a nodal agency for panchayat elections, the government has written to Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Shaleen Kabra to conduct panchayat polls in the state without further delay.
Nirmala Sharma confirmed to The Week that the ministry has written to the State Election Commission to start e preparation for holding the panchayat polls.
''Before the election is held, we have to write to the State Election Commission to prepare for the polls,'' said Nirmala Sharma, Commissioner/Secretary Rural Development .'' No dates have been fixed but we have formally written to the Commission,” she said.
A formal letter to the State Election Commission is the most important requirement to set the ball rolling for the grassroot-level polls.
With the completion of formalities, the Commission will discuss the dates for polls in different areas across the state as some areas would be snowbound soon.
According to sources, the government wants the elections to be held at the earliest in view of the winters and relative calm in Kashmir valley.
The panchayat polls will be held by using traditional ballot boxes instead of the Electronic Voting Machines. The ballot papers will be printed after names of candidates and their symbols are finalised as the elections will not be held on party basis. Each candidate will contest as independents and would be allocated a separate symbol.
The number of the panchayats where elections will be held has gone up to 4,500 as compared to 4,166 since 2011 when the last panchayats polls were held. The number of the electorates for Panchayat elections stands at 57 lakh after updating electoral rolls.
The polls will be held to elect only the Panches who would later elect the Sarpanches as the government has decided to do away with the process of direct election of Sarpanches.
