Dismal female representation: Only 5% women contestants in final phase of J&K assembly elections

Participation of females in contesting elections presents a dismal picture in the last and final phase of the three-phased Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir.

Out of a total of 415 candidates in the fray for the third phase, only 25 women are in the electoral battle. Out of the total candidates contesting elections in the last phase, only five percent are women candidates.

While elections will be held for the 40 Assembly segments in seven districts of Jammu and Kashmir only 25 female candidates are in the fray.

And more shockingly, except for Congress none of the mainstream parties of Jammu and Kashmir have fielded female candidates for 40 assembly seats, which will go for polling on Tuesday.

Congress has given a mandate to Kajal Thakur from the Bani Assembly segment of Kathua district. Another prominent woman in the fray is Safina Baig who is contesting from Wagoora-Keerani as an Independent candidate.

Wife of former Deputy Chief Minister and one of the founding members of the Peoples Democratic Party Muzaffar Hussain Baig, Safina is chairperson of District Development Council Baramulla.

Other females who joined the electoral battle in the third phase included Shafeeqa Begum on Karnah seat, Sabiha Begum on Kupwara, Khursheeda Begum on Langate, Arti Nehru on Sopore, Tanveer Fatima on Sopore seat, Mursaleen Aajir Yaseen on Sopore, Fatima Javid on Rafiabad seat, Santosh Labroo on Baramulla seat, Raqia Akhter and Nighat Parveen on Baramulla assembly segment, Rehana Begum on Keerari, Balkees Akhter on Bandipora, Sulakshna Khajuria on Udhampur West, Geeta Manhas on Ihenani, Ashri Devi on Ramnagar seat, Khushboo Bhagat on Kathua seat, Pinki Devi on Samba seat, Reena Choudhary on Samba seat, Dr. Preeti Kumari on Suchetgarh seat, Pavneet Kour on RS Pura-Jammu South, Shikha Bandral on Jammu West, Meenakshi Chibber on Jammu West, Sunita Turki on Jammu West, and Priyanka Sharma on Jammu North.

39.18 voters to decide fate of 415 candidates

With the stage set for the third and final phase of assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, the fate of 415 candidates will be determined by over 39.18 lakh voters.

The third phase of the elections will cover 40 Assembly segments across seven districts of Jammu & Kashmir. These include Kupwara, Baramulla, and Bandipora in the Kashmir Division while Jammu, Udhampur, Kathua, and Samba in the Jammu Division.

Baramulla Assembly Segment of North Kashmir leads with the highest 25 candidates in poll fray, while as Akhnoor assembly constituency of Jammu district will witness a contest among three candidates only during this phase.

According to the latest electoral rolls, 39,18,220 voters are eligible to cast their ballots in this phase, comprising 20,09,033 male voters, 19,09,130 female voters, and 57 third-gender voters.
Underlining the significance of the role to be played by youth of Jammu and Kashmir in strengthening the democracy, as many as 1.94 lakh youths voters aged 18 to 19 are eligible to vote in the third phase of the Assembly Election.

This phase will also see participation from 35,860 Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) and 32,953 voters above the age of 85.

To facilitate the voters for smooth and hassle-free electoral participation, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has established 5,060 polling stations with 100% webcasting across 40 Assembly Constituencies. These include 974 Urban Polling Stations and 4,086 Rural Polling Stations.

To enhance voter participation, 240 special polling stations have been established across 7 districts in this phase, including 50 polling stations managed by women, known as Pink polling stations, 43 polling stations manned by specially-abled persons, and 40 polling stations manned by youth. Also, there will be 45 green polling stations in order to spread messages about environmental concerns.

29 polling stations established near border

Twenty-nine polling stations are established near the Line of Control and International Border for residents residing there and 33 Unique Polling stations.

A total of 24 special Polling Stations have been established for migrant voters of the Kashmir division, which includes 19 special polling stations in Jammu, four in Delhi, and one in Udhampur district.