Last Updated on December 22, 2020 at 8:00 pm
People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration is leading the first local polls in Jammu and Kashmir since the state lost its special status last year.
In the first-ever District Development Council (DDC) polls, regional parties have performed well in Kashmir while the BJP is leading in the Jammu region.
According to the numbers received so far, the PAGD alliance is leading in 115 seats with over 90 confirmed victories so far whereas the BJP is leading in 65 seats and has won 45 till now. The Congress is leading in 43 seats with 25 assured.
As expected, the BJP is leading in the Jammu region. The party has also secured victory on three seats in Kashmir valley.
In South Kashmir, the PAGD candidates are heading to sweep the polls. As per earlier reports alliance candidates were leading on 34 seats (NC 15, PDP 14, and CPIM 5) out of the 49 seats declared by now. On the remaining 15 seats, independent candidates are leading on 10 seats and Congress is ahead on 5 seats. In North Kashmir, Alliance candidates are ahead on 13 out of 34 leads declared so far. The independents are leading on 11 seats.
In Jammu region, the BJP was leading on 57 seats while the alliance candidates are winning in 37 seats. Voting was held for 280 seats – 14 in each of the 20 districts of the newly formed union territory. This voting was held in eight phases over a period of 25 days.
Some of the prominent faces who secured victory include PDP youth president Waheed Para, who was arrested by the National Investigation Agency for alleged links with Kashmiri terrorists after he filed his nomination papers from Pulwama in Kashmir Valley.
Even though these were local polls, their results are very significant as they are seen as some sort of referendum on the constitutional changes in Jammu and Kashmir.
Omar Abdullah told NDTV that the verdict means a lot to them.He said that the BJP said that the people of J&K are very happy with the constitutional reforms. Today, the people of J&K have expressed their opinion. People do not support it and they have rejected BJP’s propaganda.
Anurag Thakur, Union Minister and the BJP’s in-charge for these polls, has called the results a victory of democracy. He said that even though people were threatened, they voted and this is a victory of democracy. PM Modi’s dream that at a grassroot level in J&K elections should be held, is fulfilled.
