Editorial: Electoral democracy eludes J&K

Gains from revoking Article 370 can materialise only when Kashmiris are made partners in their own development

Four years after the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu & Kashmir, the promised restoration of electoral democracy continues to elude the trouble-torn region. Though the militant violence and incidents of stone-pelting have come down significantly since the revocation of the statehood on August 5, 2019, a sense of restlessness is growing over the inordinate delay in holding the Assembly elections. As per the road map unveiled by the NDA government in Parliament soon after scrapping Article 370, the Assembly polls are likely to pave the way for the restoration of statehood — a longstanding demand by local residents and the political parties. Even in Ladakh, there is a growing realisation that direct rule from Delhi is not a replacement for democratic local government. The gains from the nullification of Article 370 cannot fully materialise unless Kashmiris are made stakeholders in their own development. And that can only happen if J&K is able to elect its own politicians to manage its affairs. Once the grassroots democracy is strengthened and J&K gets an elected government, development projects can take off at a great speed. While bifurcating the State into two union Territories, the Centre had promised corruption-free governance, strong grassroots democracy, employment opportunities for the local youth and massive development package. For the political parties, however, restoration of the special status remains the key issue. The successful conduct of the District Development Council (DDC) elections and completion of the delimitation exercise led to speculation about early Assembly but there is very little chance of elections being held before next year’s Lok Sabha polls.

The Supreme Court is hearing the legal and constitutional dimensions of the revocation of Article 370 but the case should not be cited as a reason to further delay the conduct of Assembly elections. J&K has been without elected representatives for five years. The Centre’s reluctance to hold elections can only give credence to the suspicion that partisan political considerations, more than the interests of the people of J&K, weigh heavily on the government. It must be pointed out that incidents of stone-throwing have come down in the Valley. However, targeted killings of Kashmiri Hindus and outsiders are a major concern. A spate of killings of civilians has exposed the fragility of the security successes. Another disturbing trend has been the dropping of small weapons by low-cost drones from across the border. There have also been attempts by militants to attack Hindu-dominated areas in Jammu, which last saw such attacks in the early 2000s. According to data available with the Ministry of Home Affairs, there were 76 incidents of stone-pelting in the Valley during the January-July period in 2021, significantly less than the 222 incidents recorded over the same period in 2020, and the 618 incidents over the same period in 2019.

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