M A I N   N E W S

Tral voters, candidates terror-struck
Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service

Tral, (Pulwama), September 26
In the Tral Assembly segment of Pulwama district, contesting elections is a mistake and winning one even worse. Termed the Kandahar of Kashmir, Tral is considered the “extreme hard target” of Jaish-e-Mohammad and Hizbul Mujahideen militants, who inhabit the hilly areas surrounding its 108 villages. Not only has Tral a history of bloodshed, it also has the highest IED (improvised explosive device) blast threat perception in the valley. Since the day elections were announced in Kashmir, the BSF has detected and blasted five mines in the segment.

Naturally, polling in Tral is as challenging a task as detecting landmines. The feeling of fear is so thick that even the candidates have not yet started campaigning here. Locked in a triangular contest are NC’s Ghulam Nabi Bhat, INC’s Surinder Singh and BSP’s Raghbir Singh. Out of the 55,000 voters here, 12,000 are Sikhs. The village of Saimu is fully inhabited by Sikhs.

‘The Tribune’ today toured this hypersensitive belt, 70 km south of Srinagar, and found that fear was the only constant factor here. There was no election mood, no banners, and no speakers.

In 1994, militants gunned down Mohd Subhan Bhat, the sitting National Conference MLA. Two years later, his son Shaukat Ahmad, a political worker, was eliminated. Militants struck again on July 31 this year to kill Mohd Subhan’s another son, Fayyaz Ahmad Bhat, who was NC’s prospective candidate this time. Mr Ghulam Bhat, the third son of Mohd Subhan is the NC candidate from Tral. However, Mr Ghulam Bhat has, not visited Tral even once.

Only Mr Surinder Singh of the Congress dared to enter Tral today. He had contested on the Congress ticket in 1996 also. He told the Tribune that Tral was a highly threatened area. “It is tough to convince people because they have to live with danger. I have been impressing upon the Sikhs to vote. Some Punjab ministers will join me for campaigning shortly,” he said.

Local residents say that militants roam about in Tral villages openly. Said a news agency owner, “Firing is commonplace. So heavy is the threat that we can’t visit the mosque to offer namaz. Voting is out of the question.”

The segment is being guarded by the BSF, Rashtriya Rifles, Jammu Kashmir Police, Jammu Kashmir Armed Police, CRPF and IB. Road operating parties have been dominating roads in the area for over a month. Four BSF companies are involved in intensive searching of roads in Satura, Wagarh, Mandoora and Tral.