Environment conducive for Lok Sabha polls but not state polls in J&K, questions Farooq Abdullah

National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Monday said all parties are in favour of holding simultaneous the Lok Sabha and state assembly polls. "Environment is conducive for Lok Sabha polls but not state polls in Jammu and Kashmir. Local body polls were held peacefully, there are enough forces present, then why can't state elections be held,” he said. The Election Commission on Sunday announced that the assembly elections in four states – Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, Odisha and Arunachal Pradesh – will be held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls. The poll panel further said the assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir will not be held along with the general elections. Since the J&K has been dissolved, the EC is bound to hold fresh polls there as well within a six-month period, which will end in May.  

Earlier, former chief minister Omar Abdullah said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has "surrendered" before Pakistan, militants and separatists. "In light of the failure to conduct assembly elections on time in J&K I'm retweeting my tweets from a few days ago. PM Modi has surrendered to Pakistan, to the militants & to the hurriyat. Well done Modi Sahib. 56-inch chest failed. #slowclap (sic),” Omar, the NC vice-president, wrote on Twitter.

ALSO READ | Lok Sabha polls to be held in seven phases starting from April 11, counting on May 23

Omar said in 2014, J-K had Lok Sabha elections on time and assembly elections on the schedule even after the most devastating floods, but delaying them now "shows how badly the BJP & earlier the BJP-PDP mishandled J&K”.

"What happened to (Union Home Minister) @rajnathsingh's assurance to Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha as well as to the all-party meeting recently in Delhi that all forces would be made available for simultaneous polls,” he asked in another tweet.

Omar said he never thought Modi would be “willing to confess his failure” on a global stage by not conducting the assembly polls on time in J-K.

The Centre and the state administration, being managed by the Centre-appointed Governor, are against holding the two elections together.

However, all political parties in the state favoured simultaneous polls during a meeting with the Election Commission earlier this week.

The J-K assembly's six-year term was to end on March 16, 2021, but it got dissolved after a ruling coalition between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) fell apart.

Lok Sabha elections will begin on April 11 and polling would be held over seven phases through May 19, followed by counting of all votes on May 23.