"Kashmiris want to move ahead with ballot, not bullet": BJP's Tarun Chugh on record voter turnout in Srinagar

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Reacting to the record voter turnout of around 38 per cent in the Srinagar constituency in the fourth phase of polling in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National General Secretary Tarun Chugh said on Wednesday that ever since Article 370 was revoked, the people of Kashmir have voted for PM Modi's agenda of 'Vishwas and 'Vikas'. Chugh said that Kashmiris have told everyone that they want to move ahead with the ballot and not the bullet.

"Ever since the shackles of Article 370 have been broken, the people of Kashmir Central have voted for PM Narendra Modi's agenda of 'Vishwas' and 'Vikas'. This is the region that saw 3-4 per cent polling before 2019. People have come out and voted for democracy, the Indian Constitution, and PM Narendra Modi's agenda. I am confident that in the other two seats in Kashmir, Kashmir North and Kashmir South, people will come out and vote in large numbers. People of Kashmir have told everyone that they want to move ahead with the ballot and not bullet," Chugh said while speaking to ANI.

Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir (J-K), which voted in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections on May 13 (Monday), recorded a voter turnout of around 38 per cent, which as per the Election Commission is more than "double" the 14.43 pc polling in the 2019 general elections. In the first general election in the valley after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, polling took place in 2,135 polling stations on Monday across the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency, which contains assembly segments of Srinagar, Ganderbal, Pulwama, Budgam, and Shopian districts.

The voter turnout in Srinagar was 14.43 per cent in 2019, 25.86 per cent in 2014, 25.55 per cent in 2009, 18.57 per cent in 2004, 11.93 per cent in 1999, 30.06 per cent in 1998, and 40.94 per cent in 1996. Prime Minister Narendra Modi applauded the people of the Srinagar parliamentary constituency for the "encouraging turnout." In 2019, polling for the Lok Sabha was held for six seats in Jammu and Kashmir. However, following the abrogation of Article 370, which resulted in the split of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state into two Union Territories -- Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, there is no longer a separate Lok Sabha constituency for Ladakh.

Voting for the Udhampur and Jammu seats was concluded on April 19 and 26, respectively, while in Srinagar, voting was done on May 13. The Baramulla seat will vote on May 20, while the Anantnag-Rajouri seat will vote on May 25.

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