The full team of the Election Commission, which reached Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday to review the preparations for the coming Assembly elections, had daylong deliberations with various stakeholders.
The EC team, headed by the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar and including Election Commissioners, Gyanesh Kumar and Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, were received by J&K's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), P.K.Pole and Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Vijay Kumar Bidhuri.
"The Election Commission of India "commenced a pivotal two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir to oversee poll preparations for Assembly Elections in the Union Territory. The visit underscores the ECI's unwavering commitment to facilitating a seamless and transparent electoral process in the region. Today, the ECI team engaged in extensive deliberations with a spectrum of stakeholders, including representatives from national and state recognised political parties to solicit valuable insights and understand their concerns, thereby fostering their active involvement in the electoral process," an official statement said.
After their arrival, the ECI team drove straight to the Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC) situated by the banks of the Dal Lake where they started interactions with representatives of various national and regional political parties.
Those sending their representatives to interact with the commission included the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Congress, the Bahujan Samaj Party, the Aam Aadmi Party, the National Conference, the Peoples Democratic Party, and the CPI-M.
The NC leaders meeting the ECI team included Sakina Itoo, Nasir Aslam Wani, Showkat Ahmad Mir, Peer Afaq Ahmad, and Shami Oberoi. The PDP had sent Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjura, Suhail Bukhari, Asiya Naqash, and Abdul Hameed Kosheen.
Congress leaders included Peerzada Sayeed, Ravinder Sharma, G.N. Monga, Mohd Anwar Bhat and Irfan Nakash, while the CPI-M had sent Mohd Abbas Rather, Abdul Rashid Ittu and Gulam Mohd Shah.
The Aam Aadmi Party was represented by Harpreet Singh, Gurmeet Singh, Amir Kapoor, and Prithipal Singh Sodan.
Party sources of all those meeting the ECI said that they are pressing for the holding of Assembly elections in J&K without any further delay.
Later in the day, the ECI reviewed the poll preparedness with District Election Officers and Superintendents of Police to deliberate on administrative and security arrangements crucial to the conduct of elections.
"Additionally, an evening session was held with the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Special Police Nodal Officer (SPNO), and Central Police Forces (CPMF) Nodal Officer to review coordination efforts among various agencies involved in election management. On August 9, the visit will culminate with a final meeting with the Chief Secretary and Director General of Police," the statement said.
The ECI team will then travel to Jammu for a review with various agencies and culminate in a press conference.
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