Page 10 - Jammu And Kashmir Politics

Transgender community rallies in Jammu, demands assembly seat reservation

Ahead of the Jammu and Kashmir polls, members of the transgender community held a rally here on Saturday, demanding reservation for them in the legislative assembly. The rally, which started from Vikram Chowk and culminated at Hari Singh Park in the heart of the city, saw participants carrying placards and raising slogans in support of their demand. "We have 90 seats in the assembly but not one is reserved for us. We want at least one seat each to be reserved in the two divisions of Jammu and Kashmir for us so that our issues can be resolved," Raveena Mahant, who was leading the rally, told reporters. She said the rally was organised to voice the transgender community's demand for reservation and representation in the electoral process which has long been denied by the political parties in the region. "Without such reservation, the community remains under-represented and is unable to influence decisions which directly impact the lives of transgender persons," she added. Mahant sai

J&K polls: Senior BJP leader resigns, threatens to contest as independent

In yet another rebellion within the BJP in Jammu and Kashmir over ticket distribution for the assembly elections, senior party leader Chander Mohan Sharma Friday announced his resignation from the party and threatened to contest as an Independent. The BJP is facing resentment over its ticket distribution in the Union territory, with party leaders and workers protesting in several districts of the Jammu region. This has prompted the party to launch a damage control exercise, deploying several top leaders, including Union ministers, to defuse the situation. "There is immense resentment and anger among leaders and workers of the party over the unfair distribution of mandates. They are holding protests to express their discontent. Saddened by this, I, one of the senior-most leaders of the BJP, along with others, have resigned from the party," Sharma, the convenor of the 'Tawi Andolan', told reporters here. Advocate Sharma, who joined the BJP in the early 1970s, criticised the party ...

J-K elections: Mehbooba Mufti won't contest polls, calls CM post powerless

Elections in Jammu and Kashmir are scheduled between September 18 and October 1 and the counting of votes will occur on October 4

J&K polls: Omar Abdullah to contest elections from Ganderbal constituency

Omar represented Ganderbal from 2009 to 2014 when he was the chief minister (CM) of the NC-Congress coalition government

Ahead of elections J&K authorities set up helpdesk to reach out to migrants

As preparations for assembly elections gain momentum in Jammu and Kashmir, the relief and rehabilitation department has established a helpdesk to assist eligible voters from the displaced Kashmiri community residing across the country. This initiative aims to facilitate smooth polling at special polling stations and through postal ballots, according to officials. The department has intensified efforts to ensure free and fair elections for Kashmiri migrants, with the Election Commission (EC) setting up 24 special polling stations and a postal ballot scheme for displaced community voters in Jammu, Udhampur, and Delhi, they said. "A helpdesk has been established in our office and across various zones. Several employees have been deployed to ensure seamless facilitation of migrant polling," Relief and Rehabilitation Commissioner Dr Arvind Karwani told PTI. Karwani emphasised that the helpdesk is actively addressing issues faced by migrants, with the goal of enhancing voter facilities .

J&K polls: Banned Jamaat-e-Islami to field three independents in Kashmir

All three candidates of Jamaat-e-Islami will contest from different constituencies in South Kashmir

J-K polls: Congress names nine candidates in first list after NC alliance

Congress and the National Conference (NC) reached a seat-sharing agreement in which Congress will contest 32 of the 90 Assembly seats

National Conference, Congress settle seats division for J&K Assembly polls

The National Conference (NC) and the Congress Monday agreed to contest 51 and 32 seats respectively for the assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir. One seat each has been allotted to the CPI(M) and the Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP), the allies announced at a joint press conference at NC president Farooq Abdullah's residence here after day-long negotiations. According to their seat-sharing formula, the NC will contest 51 seats in J-K and the Congress 32. They also said there will be a "friendly contest" on five seats of the Union Territory. The leaders said the list of seats each party will be contesting, as well as the names of the candidates, will be issued later. The NC president said the alliance is up for a fight against the powers "who are dividing the people not just in this state, but across the country." "The INDIA bloc was made with an aim to fight those forces who are trying to create a communal divide in the country. Today, I am happy that the negotiat

BJP names 16 candidates for first phase of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls

The Centre on Monday announced that five new districts, namely Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra, and Changthang, are being carved out in Ladakh

PM Modi to lead BJP's assembly election campaign in poll-bound J&K

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead the BJP's campaign in the upcoming assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, the first such democratic exercise after the erstwhile state was downgraded to Union Territory in August 2019. Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP national president J P Nadda and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath were also included in the list of 40 star campaigners submitted by the party to the Election Commission for the first phase of assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir. Union ministers Nitin Gadkari, Manohar Lal Khattar, G Kishan Reddy, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Jitendra Singh and former union ministers Anurag Thakur and Smriti Irani and Gen (Retd.) V K Singh besides Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma and former Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jai Ram Thakur are other prominent faces who will visit Jammu and Kashmir during the campaigning. The three-phased assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir are scheduled for

PDP's J-K polls manifesto: Article 370, diplomatic talks, Kashmiri pandits

Peoples Democratic Party Chief Mehbooba Mufti promises Article 370 restoration, diplomatic dialogues with Pakistan, and return of Kashmiri pandits in J-K Assembly elections manifesto

Multiple poles in J&K polls: UT looks forward to representative democracy

With no local government, and with bureaucrats at the helm for the past six years, the people in the UT are looking forward to representative democracy

Cong allies with NC ahead of J-K polls as it is hungry for power: Odisha CM

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi slammed the Congress for joining hands with the National Conference (NC) ahead of the Jammu and Kashmir assembly polls, alleging that the grand old party is "hungry for power". He sought clarification from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi whether his party would "support the National Conference's promise for a separate flag in Jammu and Kashmir". Does the Congress support any unrest in Jammu and Kashmir by increasing terrorist activities once again? Will the Congress have the support to promote separatists by talking to the arch-enemy Pakistan, instead of establishing peace by talking to the people of Jammu and Kashmir?" Majhi asked Gandhi in the video message. He also asked, "Will the Congress party support the cross-border terrorism by opening trade with Pakistan? Will this not affect the local ecosystem?" The BJP leader sought clarification from the Congress on "whether it supports the decision of the National Conference to give government jo

CEO urges electors in J&K to leverage ECI apps for better voting experience

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Electoral Officer P K Pole has urged voters to leverage the technological features introduced by the Election Commission for enhanced elector awareness and polling experience in the upcoming assembly elections in the union territory. The three-phased elections in Jammu and Kashmir is scheduled for September 18, 25 and October 1 and the results will be declared on October 4. "The ECI has launched several mobile apps, including cVIGIL, Know Your Candidate, Suvidha, Voter Helpline App, among others to ensure that the voting experience for the electors all across the country is easy and smooth. In Jammu and Kashmir, over 88.03 lakhs voters will be able to make the best use of these apps," Pole said in a statement on Friday. Exhorting the voters to use the voter-friendly mobile applications, he said these apps are available on both Android and iOS platforms. To prevent any violations during the assembly election, voters are encouraged to use 'cVIGIL,' a mobile ap

J&K polls: Cong, NC join hands; Rahul Gandhi vows to fight for statehood

There is still no clarity whether the Mehbooba Mufti-led People's Democratic Party (PDP) will be part of the Congress-NC alliance

INDIA bloc uncertain on J-K polls: AAP may go solo; Cong open for tie-up

Assembly elections in Jammu-Kashmir are scheduled from September 18 to October 1 in three phases. The counting of votes will be done on October 4.

Kharge, Rahul to visit Jammu, Srinagar in preparation for Assembly polls

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi will be visiting Jammu and Srinagar on August 21 and 22 for key meetings in preparation for the upcoming assembly elections. The visit comes after Congress president Kharge and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi met general secretaries, in-charges and screening committee members of four poll-bound states on Monday. "On 21st and 22nd August, Congress President Shri Mallikarjun Kharge ji and Leader of Opposition Shri Rahul Gandhi ji will be visiting Jammu and Srinagar for key meetings in preparation for the upcoming assembly elections," Congress general secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal said on X. Congress National General Secretary Gulam Ahmed Mir told PTI in Jammu that "Kharge ji and Rahul ji will be visiting Jammu and Kashmir for two days, starting tomorrow. They will arrive in Jammu tomorrow afternoon". Mir said that during their stay, they will engage in extensive meetings with leaders

Ram Madhav, G Kishan Reddy appointed as BJP in-charge for J&K election

The BJP on Tuesday appointed its former national general secretary Ram Madhav and Union minister G Kishan Reddy as in-charge for the upcoming assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir. A statement to this effect was issued by party national general secretary Arun Singh here. "BJP national president JP Nadda has appointed Ram Madhav, former national general secretary, and Union minister G Kishan Reddy as election in-charge for upcoming assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir," it said. "This appointment comes into effect immediately," the statement said.

Will approach SC if Centre fails to restore J&K's statehood: Omar Abdullah

National Conference vice-president Omar Abdullah on Monday said his party would approach the Supreme Court if the Centre fails to restore the statehood to Jammu and Kashmir. "The reality is that we have a fight on our hands to get our powers back and we have no doubt that we will succeed. At the very least, in the first instance we will get a statehood back for J-K," Abdullah told reporters here. "Within the state all the powers that are required to fulfil these promises, are with the government of J-K. And we will fulfil the promises," he added. Abdullah was interacting with the media after releasing the party's manifesto. The National Conference (NC) leader said if the Centre is not willing to restore the statehood to Jammu and Kashmir then his party would approach the apex court. "We only have to go as far to remind the Supreme Court that the government of India has promised the SC that statehood will be restored to J-K. In the unlikely event that the GoI is not willing to do i

Cong appoints Karra as J&K unit chief, Keshav Mahto to lead Jharkhand unit

In a significant organisational reshuffle ahead of the assembly polls, the Congress on Friday appointed Tariq Hameed Karra as president of its Jammu and Kashmir unit and Keshav Mahto Kamlesh as chief of the Jharkhand Pradesh Congress Committee. While Karra replaces Vikar Rasool Wani in Jammu and Kashmir, Kamlesh takes over from Rajesh Thakur. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also appointed two working presidents for Jammu and Kashmir -- Tara Chand and Raman Bhalla -- as the party gets battle ready for assembly polls in the Union Territory, the dates of which were announced by the Election Commission on Friday. Kharge has also appointed Wani as a special invitee to the Congress Working Committee (CWC) with immediate effect. Karra has been relieved from his current position as permanent invitee to the CWC, the party said in a statement. "The party appreciates the contributions of the outgoing Pradesh Congress Committee president Vikar Rasool Wani," the statement said. In Jharkh