JAMMU: Approximately 200 additional companies of paramilitary forces and Jammu and Kashmir Armed Police (JKAP) have either arrived or are route to Rajouri and Poonch, which will go to polls along with South Kashmir in the sixth phase on May 25. The deployment of paramilitary forces has been increased in the twin border districts following a terror attack in Surankote that resulted in the martyrdom of an IAF Warrior and injuries to five others.
Officials informed the Excelsior that the deployment of additional Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and Armed Police is nearly equal in Rajouri and Poonch districts, with each district receiving almost 100 companies. This is in addition to the existing paramilitary and police forces in these districts.
“Some companies arrived in both districts yesterday, while others are expected to be in place by tonight, having been redirected from Baramulla Parliamentary constituency where polling concluded in the fifth phase yesterday,” officials said.
Troops are currently engaged in anti-militancy search operations in the Pir Panjal forests and are effectively guarding the Line of Control (LoC). Both Rajouri and Poonch districts share the LoC with Pakistan, raising concerns that Pakistan might attempt to infiltrate terrorists to disrupt the elections. However, strict Army surveillance on the LoC has thwarted such intrusion attempts.
According to officials, more paramilitary companies may arrive in Rajouri and Poonch tomorrow or the day after to secure positions ahead of the elections. Rajouri and Poonch districts have eight Assembly constituencies, but one segment (Sunderbani-Kalakote) is part of the Jammu Lok Sabha seat. The remaining seven Assembly seats are part of the Anantnag-Poonch-Rajouri Parliamentary constituency.
Polling for this seat was originally scheduled for the third phase on May 7 but was deferred to the sixth phase on May 25 due to adverse weather conditions and the closure of Mughal Road, which connects the two districts with South Kashmir. Two terror attacks occurred recently at Shahdara Sharief in Rajouri and Surankote in Poonch, resulting in the death of a civilian (brother of an Army soldier) and an IAF Warrior, along with injuries to five soldiers.
The Election Commission will deploy 5405 VVPATs (Voter Verified Paper Audit Trails), 6888 Ballot Units, and 4996 Control Units in the Anantnag-Rajouri seat. Out of 2338 Polling Stations in the constituency, 2216 are in rural areas, highlighting the rural nature of the region. There are only 222 Polling Stations in urban areas. Eighteen Polling Stations will be managed entirely by women and People with Disabilities (PwD), and webcasting will be conducted from 1775 stations.
There are 90 Model Polling Stations in the Anantnag seat. The total electorate in the Anantnag-Rajouri segment is 18,36,576, with 9,33,647 males, 9,02,902 females, and 27 third-gender voters. There are 540 centenarian voters and one overseas voter. Additionally, 86,394 are first-time voters, while 4,55,289 are in the 20-29 age group. Voters aged 85 years and older total 14,848, and there are 17,967 PwD voters. The constituency also includes 12,961 service voters.
A total of 20 candidates are contesting in the Anantnag-Poonch-Rajouri seat, which includes South Kashmir in the Valley and the twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch in the Jammu division. Prominent candidates include People’s Democratic Party (PDP) president and former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, former Minister Mian Altaf (National Conference), Zaffar Manhas (Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party), and Advocate Maqbool Parray (DPAP). This is the first Lok Sabha election in which Anantnag has been linked with Rajouri and Poonch, dividing the constituency between Jammu and Kashmir divisions
