Ghulam Nabi Azad, chief of the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP), expressed astonishment at the voter turnout in the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency following the abrogation of Article 370 and the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories in 2019. The constituency witnessed 37.98% voting, which Azad deemed insufficient to gauge public sentiment.
Azad remarked, “I had hoped that Kashmir would witness an 80 to 90 per cent turnout in view of what has been happening in the past seven to eight years. Article 370 was removed, and statehood was snatched. So I thought the turnout would be high, like 90 to 95 per cent.”
Despite the Election Commission (EC) dubbing it the “highest turnout in decades,” Azad questioned the significance of the marginal increase in percentage, asserting that such fluctuations are common across Indian constituencies. He highlighted the voting pattern in militancy-prone areas, stating that the turnout mirrored trends observed nationwide.
Regarding protests in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK), Azad expressed sympathy, lamenting the lack of democratic governance in Pakistan. He remarked, “I pity the people of Pakistan as they did not get the kind of democratic Government that India has got.”
Azad’s comments come amidst ongoing political discourse and electoral dynamics in the region, emphasizing the need for a nuanced analysis of voter behaviour post the constitutional changes in Jammu and Kashmir.
