Omar blames Centre for low voter turnout in Srinagar dist

Former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday blamed the Central Government for low voter turnout in Srinagar.

“I was expecting a little higher turnout because there was no boycott call. There were no attacks. There was no attempt to threaten the voters. I feel the Centre is also responsible for this. They tried to present high voter turnout as a sign of normalcy,” he said.

He said the Central Government made “another mistake” by inviting diplomats. “Maybe, they (government) wanted to show that there is a big change in Srinagar. The people of Srinagar did not want to be used in this manner. So, they voted in lesser numbers,” said Omar.

Meanwhile, leaders and political experts in the Valley have cited multiple reasons for lower voter turnout in Srinagar in the second phase of the Assembly elections, which were held here yesterday.

J&K Chief Electoral Officer PK Pole said on Wednesday that Srinagar district, which had eight Assembly segments, recorded 29.51 per cent voter turnout on Wednesday. Out of the six UT districts that went to the polls on Wednesday, Srinagar district recorded the lowest voter turnout of 29.81 per cent, while two other Valley districts saw more than 62 per cent voter turnout.

Tafazul Mushtaq, Peoples Democratic Party candidate from the Khanyar Assembly segment in Srinagar, said during the campaigning, he found that “people were disillusioned” with the system.

“When I went to the interior areas of my constituency, most of the people said they don’t have access to basic amenities,” he said, adding that people looked “fed up with the system.”

He said in the recent Lok Sabha elections, people came out with full enthusiasm “primarily to vote against the decision of the abrogation of Article 370.”

“People in the Valley want unity. They want to keep the BJP out. Had there been joint candidates (of secular political parties), the turnout could have been different this time,” he said.

National Conference senior leader Tanvir Sadiq, who contested from Srinagar’s Zadibal Assembly segment, said urban cities usually vote less. “Srinagar, which did not participate in voting for 30 years, will take time to get a feel of it,” he said.

He, however, said the voting percentage was better this time as compared to the elections held recently. “Gradually it (voter turnout) is increasing…Things will definitely improve in future,” he said.

Srinagar district witnessed a marginal increase in voter turnout as compared to the 2014 Assembly polls and the recently held Lok Sabha elections.

Professor Noor Baba, a political expert in Srinagar, said, “A section of people might have continued with the boycott politics, which we have witnessed in the past in parts of Srinagar. This time, candidates apparently failed to convince the voters”.