Article 370, power outages: J&K parties raise pitch ahead of polls

With 24 Assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir to vote on Wednesday after a decade, several parties have been focusing their campaigning on key issues, particularly on the abrogation of Article 370, the security environment following the scrapping of Article 370 and erratic power supply during winter.
The mainstream parties, including the National Conference (NC) and People’s Democratic Party (PDP), have kept their focus on Article 370, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir till its scrapping in 2019. Notably, Sheikh Abdul Rashid, popularly known as Engineer Rashid, who was recently released on interim bail in a 2017 terror funding case, has also hit the campaign trail.
Engineer Rashid’s core campaign themes centred on the fight for restoring Article 370. The NC and PDP, too, have similar promises aimed at restoring Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, enriched with development plans to sway to the voters.
The revocation of Article 370 and turning the erstwhile state into a Union Territory has remained an emotive issue for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, particularly those in the Kashmir Valley. The resurgence of this issue in the manifestos of NC and PDP underscores its significance.
On the other hand, Engineer Rashid has centred his entire campaign on reversing the changes to Jammu and Kashmir’s existence enforced on August 5, 2019. His win in the Lok Sabha elections is attributed to the emotional connection he managed to make with the masses, as they saw him as the lone ranger jailed for his unwavering stand on the scrapping of Article 370.
Following the abrogation of Article 370, an extensive crackdown on separatist elements gave free rein to security agencies to dismantle the anti-national machinery that had plagued Jammu and Kashmir for decades.
While this led to significant reductions in stone-pelting and armed violence, people faced hardships due to stringent procedures for obtaining essential services. Many people are urging the government to continue with its crackdown on separatist elements, but not at the cost of impacting hundreds of businesses.
The Pulwama attack by Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) in February 2019, which resulted in the death of 40 CRPF soldiers, led to heightened security measures, including the halting of civilian traffic for military convoys on NH 44.
The curbs continue to cause significant inconvenience to the people, who have demanded some relaxation in restrictions in light of the improved security situation.
Like any other elections, people want parties to focus on pressing basic issues like infrastructure, water and electricity. In Jammu and Kashmir, power outages, particularly during harsh winters, along with rampant unemployment, are the most pressing concerns for the people, particularly those having businesses.
Unemployment has been highlighted by manifestos of various parties and stands out as a grave issue, with the Congress citing it as the highest in 45 years.
Jammu and Kashmir, which has 90 Assembly seats, will vote in three phases on September 18, September 25 and October 1. Results are expected to be declared on October 8.