With 8 dead, Srinagar bypoll turnout points to big problems

Only 7.14 per cent voting was witnessed in Srinagar on Sunday

A record low turnout of 7.14 per cent and a high incidence of violence were witnessed on Sunday during the by-election in the parliamentary seat of Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir. Eight people were killed in the firing by security forces.

Rampaging mobs took to streets in scores of places across the Lok Sabha constituency straddling Srinagar, Budgam and Ganderbal districts, perpetrating wanton violence and arson, even setting ablaze a polling station and attempting to set on fire two others, amid a boycott called by the separatists.

An overview

According to a report in ‘The Hindu’, Srinagar parliament seat, comprising of 15 Assembly segments spread over three districts of Srinagar, Budgam and Ganderbal, saw only around 80,000 votes being polled out of 12.5 lakh voters.

The main contestants for the seat are Farooq Abdullah, joint candidate of the National Conference and Congress, and Nazir Ahmad Khan, nominee of the ruling PDP. The seat fell vacant after Tariq Hameed Karra of the PDP resigned to protest the crackdown on street protesters last year.

The Lok Sabha by-election will be held on April 15, while votes for the assembly bypolls will be counted on April 13.

Prohibitory orders were imposed in twin districts of Budgam and Ganderbal in central Kashmir. Internet services remained suspended for the second day today. Public transport was off the roads, while private transport was minimal.

Kashmir University and Islamic University of Science and Technology have postponed all examinations that were scheduled for today.

How Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency has polled in the past

Year	Turnout
2014	25.9 %
2009	25.6 %
2004	18.6 %
1999	11.9 %
1998	30.1 %
1996	40.9 %

Poll-related violence in the past

According to a report in Scroll, such poll-related vehemence is not new to the Valley. In the Lok Sabha elections of 1998, at least 45 political activists were killed.

The Assembly elections of 2002, which took place less than a year after the Parliament attack by Jaish-e-Mohammad,were particularly violent.

88 political workers were killed in the run up to this Assembly elections of 2002 and militants made repeated attacks on then Tourism Minister Sakina Itoo.

Experts point out that the big difference between violence in the past and present is that while it was terrorist organisations that targeted the electoral process in the past, now the process is being opposed by local populations now.

Ruling party PDP has now requested EC to postpone the bypoll in Anantnag.