Paper Leaks, Cover story 1 July ,2024

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Paper leaks
News Kashmir Analysis
Paper leaks in the number of competitive exams across the country is causing much uproar, as it is harming the future of millions of students in the country.
President Droupadi Murmu also in her presidential address to the Parliament observed crucial thoughts on the issue.
government, she said, is fully committed to investigating the recent incidents of paper leaks and ensure that the guilty are punished. As she made the remarks, cries of “NEET” were heard from the Opposition benches.
“Sanctity, transparency are a must in government recruitments and examinations. The government is committed to conduct fair investigation and ensure the most stringent punishment to those guilty in the recent incidents of paper leak,” she said, adding that there is a need to rise above “partisan politics” and take strong  steps on the issue.
As a matter of fact, with the nation and political opponents clamouring over the NEET-UG paper leak case. The NET-UG and NET-PG examinations have also been postponed, giving the opposition ammo to double down on issues of youth employment – a talking point ahead of the Lok Sabha 2024 elections.
The president said Parliament has also made a strong law against paper leaks and is working towards major reforms in the exam process and the functioning of exam-related bodies.
“It is the continuous endeavour of the Government to provide right opportunities to the youth of the country to demonstrate their talent. Parliament has also enacted a strict law against unfair means in examinations.
In year 2023, Among the major paper leaks this year was the Hindi question paper of the Telangana Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examination getting out. WhatsApp was the primary medium for spreading the question paper once it got out, in this case.
In Telangana again a paper leak was discovered during the Assistant Engineer recruitment exam, which eventually led to its cancellation on March 5 that year, and candidates who appeared for the test were left in a lurch about their futures.
Assam saw papers of two subjects leaked during the High School Leaving Certificate (HSLC) exams. When the papers for General Science and English got out, the Secondary Education Board of Assam (SEBA) was forced to cancel the tests.
In year 2022, Uttar Pradesh, there was a leak during the Lekhpal recruitment exams, based on which the state would get its village accountant officers within the revenue administration. The police formed a special task force, arresting at least 21 across seven districts.
It is worth mentioning here that Not just NEET, but at least 64 other major examinations across 19 Indian states have been marred by incidents of question paper leaks since 2019, according to data analysed by India Today’s Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) team.
One hopes that menace of paper leaks is curbed so that students are ensured bright future.

Suicides a grim reality of J&K, cover story 17 June,2024

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Suicides a grim reality of J&K
News Kashmir Analysis
Suicides once thought very alien thing in  the valley of Kashmir,  since some years are now  happening on regular instances. In recent times we have heard about lot of suicides happening in our region.
According to prominent Knowledge source Wikipedia, suicide  is the act of intentionally causing one’s own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and substance abuse (including alcoholism and the use of and withdrawal from benzodiazepines) are risk factors. Some suicides are impulsive acts due to stress (such as from financial or academic difficulties), relationship problems (such as breakups or divorces), or harassment and bullying.Those who have previously attempted suicide are at a higher risk for future attempts. Effective suicide prevention efforts include limiting access to methods of suicide such as firearms, drugs, and poisons; treating mental disorders and substance abuse; careful media reporting about suicide; and improving economic conditions.
Recently, a teenage
herself to death in her home at Harwan area of Srinagar late on Thursday, 13 June evening, officials said.
An 18 year old boy hailing from Dassal village of Rajouri allegedly committed suicide by hanging with the ceiling of his house.
The deceased was identified as the  resident of Dassal.
Numbers and figures are grim.
Jammu and Kashmir topped the country in attempted suicides in 2022, the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) has revealed.  Against 1769 instances recorded by the Bureau during the year across India, 497 were reported from Jammu and Kashmir alone.
It is heartbreaking The entire country, in the meanwhile, is witnessing an increase in the number of cases in which the abetment to suicide is taking place. Against 8816  cases in 2020 and 9361 such cases in 2021, the number in 2022 reached 9400. In the Jammu and Kashmir context, there were only 44 cases of abetment to suicide involving 56 persons.
We are very well aware that,
Suicide is death caused by injuring oneself with the intent to die. A suicide attempt is when someone harms themselves with any intent to end their life, but they do not die as a result of their actions. Many factors can increase the risk for suicide or protect against it.
Kashmir valley was once known for its pious value system ,termed as the abode of Sufi saints.
The phenomenon of suicides was once very uncommon in Kashmir but the graph of suicides has now run north too in recent times. Actually, we need to understand the reasons behind rising suicides in holistic terms to solve this menace.

NDA Again, but Strong Opposition- Verdict 2024

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NDA Again, but strong opposition – Verdict 2024
News Kashmir Analysis
The results of the historic 2024 Lok Sabha  elections were announced on 4 June, 2024.  The results surprised one and all, proved all major  exit polls wrong .
The BJP, which enjoyed a handsome majority in the previous two terms, secured only 240 seats, way behind the 272 mark needed to form a government in its own right. The NDA won 293 seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha.
As a matter of fact, The four allies whose support is critical for the BJP to reach the majority are N Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP, which has won 16 seats, Nitish Kumar’s JDU (12), Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena (7) and Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party-Ram Vilas (5).
The motley assortment of regional parties are seeking to leverage their new influence to extract minister positions.
Political experts opine that
coalition negotiations are a throwback to an era before 2014 – when PM Modi swept to power with an outright BJP majority – in which alliance partners haggled for positions and benefits.
Narendra Modi, preparing to take oath for a third straight term, chaired a meeting of the ruling alliance’s members on Wednesday, 5 June 2024, where he was unanimously elected as the NDA leader.
On 6 June, Thursday, senior BJP leaders, including Union ministers Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh, held deliberations to set in motion the government formation efforts. The meeting was attended by newly elected MPs of the BJP and NDA constituent parties, Rajya Sabha MPs, Chief Ministers and Deputy Chief Ministers of states ruled by the BJP and NDA, floor leaders of legislative assemblies and councils, and national office bearers of the BJP.
In Jammu and Kashmir too results were surprising as two former Chief Ministers lost, as National Conference won two seats out of three from Kashmir.  The surprise came from North Kashmir wherein Omar Abdullah was defeated by Engineer Rashid .
From Jammu BJP lead a clean sweep as it won both seats.  The country will but this time around have a strong opposition.
The opposition  INDIA bloc has 234 Lok Sabha seats, 38 short of the majority mark of 272 in the 543-member House.
After the India Bloc  meeting, Kharge said the INDIA bloc would continue to “fight against the fascist rule of the BJP led by PM Modi”. “We will take the appropriate steps at the appropriate time to realise the people’s desire not to be ruled by the BJP’s government.”
“This is our decision and we altogether agreed on these points and we will keep up with the promises we have given to the people,” the Congress President added.
The coming times and years in National polity offer a unique perspective.
On Friday 7 June ,2024, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s allies on Friday endorsed Narendra Modi as the leader of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) Parliamentary Party, setting the stage for his third term as the Prime Minister, even as Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader Chandrababu Naidu underlined the need for regional aspirations and national interests to go hand in hand to ensure holistic development of all sections.
While on Sunday 9 June 2024 historic oath of PM Modi and cabinet took place.

Janadesh 2024

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Janadesh 2024
News Kashmir Analysis
The biggest festival of Democracy in World The Indian National Elections 2024 have come to an end . Now, all eyes are Fixed on June 4, 2024 for the much anticipated verdict.
As a matter of fact, the high-decibel campaigns for the seventh and final phase of Lok Sabha elections draw to a closed on Thursday, 30 May and all eyes are on verdict day on June 4, when the fate of the incumbent NDA government and the opposition INDIA alliance will be decided. The last phase of polling  held on June 1 saw polling for  57 seats across eight states and Union Territories.
The prediction market is in full swing.
As a matter of fact, the Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav had been making predictions recently about INDIA bloc going to form a government at the Centre. Amit Shah’s candid predictions may cause worries for these leaders.
Home Minister and BJP’s master election strategist Amit Shah, in an exclusive interview to India TV, has predicted a thumping majority for his party in Lok Sabha elections. He has also predicted that BJP would form government in Odisha and a coalition government with Telugu Desam Party in Andhra Pradesh this time. Shah predicted a clean sweep for BJP in 16 states and Union Territories. Shah Predicted BJP winning 70 seats out of 80 in Uttar Pradesh.
The concluding day saw high power  campaigning with top leaders of the BJP-led NDA and the Opposition INDIA bloc making last-ditch efforts to woo voters. While Prime Minister Modi held rallies in Punjab before heading to Kanyakumari for a three-day meditation trip, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addressed rallies in Punjab, where 13 seats are up for grabs.
Prominent Political Analyst
Yogendra Yadav shared his predictions for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections last week, suggesting that the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) may face challenges in achieving a decisive victory.
Yadav predicts that the BJP alone will not exceed 260 seats and will find it “impossible” to surpass the 300-mark. He even suggested that the saffron party might fall below 275 or even 250 seats.
On the other hand, Political strategist Prashant Kishor has stated that the incumbent BJP government at the Centre faces neither significant dissatisfaction nor a strong demand for an alternative in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
The Jan Suraaj Party chief predicts that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to lead the BJP to another victory, with the party potentially matching or surpassing its 2019 seat tally of 303.
“I think the Modi-led BJP is returning. They may get the same numbers as last election or do slightly better,” Kishor told NDTV.
All the eyes of Nation will be glued to Mobiles and Television sets to watch the results and there is lot of excitement.
What Happens on June 4, 2024 would have larger ramifications on the development and polity of the country .
It will be also interesting to see who wins the five parliamentary seats from Jammu and Kashmir.

Ladakh Parliamentary constituency Profile, 20 May, 2024

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Ladakh Parliamentary Constituency Profile
News Kashmir Analysis
Ladakh is the only Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituency of the union territory of Ladakh, India. It is the largest such constituency in India, in terms of area, with a total area of 173,266 square kilometres (66,898 sq mi). The number of electors (voters) in the constituency was 159,000 in 2019.
This time around, Ladakh Lok Sabha seat, which is lone Parliamentary constituency in the Union Territory of Ladakh, has 1,84,803 electorates in total and is among very few Lok Sabha constituencies which have less than two lakh voters. It will go to polls in fifth phase on May 20.
As per the official data, out of a total electorates of 1,84,803 in Ladakh seat; 92,689 are male and 92,114 are females. Leh district has 88877 voters and Kargil 95926.
On the last day for withdrawal of nomination, a total of two independent candidates have withdrawn their nomination papers including in favor of independent candidate Haji Hanifa Jan. The candidates that have withdrawn their nominations include Kacho Mohd Feroz and Sajjad Hussain Sajjad Hussain Kargili. Now a total of three candidates remain in fray to contest Lok Sabha election 2024 for Ladakh Parliamentary seat.
On the other hand, National Conference (NC) has faced a revolt in the Kargil district of Ladakh ahead of the Lok Sabha elections for the parliamentary constituency after the district unit Kargil submitted a mass resignation letter to the party High Command .
The setback for the NC in Kargil comes following disagreements over the choice of candidate for the Lok Sabha elections between the National Conference (NC) and Congress who are part of the INDIA bloc.
On the otherhand of the spectrum,
Sonam Wangchuk,  a celebrated environmentalist and innovator, recently decided to sit on a 21-day hunger strike to express the anguish of Ladakhis. This protest followed a series of talks between the Ladakhi leadership and the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), which hit a cul-de-sac on March 3, 2024.
The Ladakhi leaders approached the MHA with four demands: 1) Statehood for Ladakh 2) Inclusion of Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution 3) Setting up of a separate public service commission for Ladakh 4) Two parliamentary seats for Ladakh.
Ladakh is also a world famous tourism spot ,and with unique and fragile ecosystems with issues of voters also ranging on preserving the same .
The contest is hoped to be triangular and very interesting this time around.

Academic Stress, Cover story 27 May, 2024

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Academic Stress
News Kashmir Analysis
Academic stress is hurting children and youth across the world.  In our country India the Academic stress is of burning concern. In Jammu and Kashmir too, Academic stress is of serious concern.
No doubt the children should excel in their studies but pressure of academics should not wear them out. As sometimes, too much Academic stress can have damaging consequences on them.
It is said that 65 percent teens in Kashmir face academic stress.
As a matter of fact, stress and exam pressure can lead to dire consequences for kids.
Few time back, a  study conducted by the Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (IMHANS) has shown widespread academic stress prevalent among students in Kashmir, with
Study, titled “Prevalence of psychiatric morbidity among school-going adolescents in the age group of 13–19 years,” asserts that there is a very high prevalence of psychiatric morbidity (anxiety combined with depression) of any kind among adolescents in Kashmir, many of which are unidentified and thus untreated.
The study found depression as the most common psychiatric illness among adolescents with a higher prevalence in males, while anxiety disorders are more common among females.
The study was carried out on 16 schools in the twin districts of Srinagar and Ganderbal.
A worrying facet is that the relentless pursuit of academic excellence, a majority of students feel pressured by the weight of exams. Every now and then, we keep hearing about one student or the other succumbing to death because they were either too depressed or couldn’t handle the pressure their parents and teachers were putting them under. In light of an increasing number of deaths of students due to academic stress.
In a welcome development, sometime back, central government issued guidelines in January 2024 to control bullying and prevent suicides caused due to academic stress in coaching centres. According to the guidelines, coaching centres will not be allowed to admit students below 16. The central government’s new guidelines mandate the registration of coaching centres along with their strict regulation. According to the guidelines, coaching centres should have basic facilities; provide extra academic support to students facing learning difficulties; holidays should be given to students every week; exams should not be conducted immediately after holidays and other positive guidelines were also issued.
The hope on ground is that we are able to contain academic stress in our country for a bright future.

Baramulla Loksabha Constituency Profile, 6 May 2024 cover story

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Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency profile
Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency is one of the five Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir . The prestigious seat of Baramulla  loksabha constituency has over 17.28 lac voters registered with 8.7 lac males and 8.5 lac females. There are 33 transgenders registered as well
After the Delimitation, New Assembly segments in the Baramulla Loksabha Constituency are :
AC No. AC Name District
1 Karnah Kupwara
2 Trehgam
3 Kupwara
4 Lolab
5 Handwara
6 Langate
7 Sopore Baramulla
8 Rafiabad
9 Uri
10 Baramulla
11 Gulmarg
12 Wagoora-Kreeri
13 Pattan
14 Sonawari Bandipora
15 Bandipora
16 Gurez (ST)
27 Budgam Budgam
28 Beerwah.
The previous election on the seat was won by Mohammad Akbar Lone of Jammu and Kashmir National Conference.
As a matter of fact, The number of assembly constituencies in Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency increased from 15 to 18 after J&K’s delimitation in 2022. The delimitation exercise, which was necessitated by J&K Reorganisation Act 2019, increased the number of assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir from 83 to 90.
Pertinently, the last date for filling of nomination papers to contest Lok Sabha elections 2024 for 1-Baramulla Parliamentary Constituency was 3rd of May till 3 PM.
The contest on the constituency is quite stiff.
People’s Conference president Sajad Gani Lone on Wednesday , 1 May, 2024 filed nomination papers from the Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency in Jammu and Kashmir.
Jailed Awami Ittehad Party leader Abdul Rashid Sheikh alias Engineer Rashid has already filed nomination papers from this north Kashmir constituency.
It is worth mentioning here that National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah filed his nomination papers for the Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency in Jammu and Kashmi on Thursday, May 02, 2024.
Accompanied by NC’s treasurer Shammi Oberoi and senior vice president of Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee G N Monga, Abdullah filed the nomination papers before Baramulla Deputy Commissioner Minga Sherpa, who is the returning officer of the constituency.
The main contest is between Omar Abdullah and Sajad Gani Lone.
PDP has fielded Fayaz Mir from the constituency.
Expert pulse is that The support bases of Sajad, Fayaz and Rashid, who is popularly known as Engineer Rashid, are mainly centred on Kupwara district, where they would be hoping  from the same vote pie. This would give an edge to Omar not only on account of his appeal as an ex-CM but also due to the point that the NC has a cadre base spread throughout  the length of Valley.
The contest on the Baramulla Constituency is going to be very interesting.

Optimism in Srinagar Loksabha Constituency voting, cover story 13 May 2023 issue

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Optimism in Srinagar Loksabha voting
Farzana Mumtaz/ Rameez Makhdoomi
On 13 May, 2024
At Srinagar Parliamentary Constituency the voting had started on a promising note ,with the last turnout being surpassed at 11am  in morning.
Heavy to moderate turnout was witnessed in polling booths across.
At Sultan Molalla Merbehari at around 12 :15 in morning out of  739 total votes 387 were cast, with 243 males and 144 votes cast.
At 11:45 at Koli Mohalla Buddal Merbehari  755 votes were assigned  356 votes were cast 243 Male  female 113  .
Mohammad Amin a voter here Said that justice is biggest issue of voters here.
The civic issues are also  in mind when voting .
As a matter of fact, Kashmir’s Srinagar parliamentary seat which went  for  Lok Sabha polls ,  It was the first election that the  Himalayan valley was   witnessing since the abrogation of region’s special status in August 2019.
Smiling voters exchanged greetings with the deployed masses,  troopers while casting votes .
In some instances the voting turnout was although dull, at Historic Batmaloo polling booth just 47 votes were cast out of 434 till 2 pm.
Voters Enthusiasm seen across Srinagar Parliamentary Constituency, with brisk to moderate polling,and voters vocal about their burning issues .
Lok Sabha Elections 2024 (Phase 4) VOTER TURNOUT
PC – Srinagar
Preliminary Update (from ECI) till: 7 pm
Central Shalteng – 24.76 percent
Chadoora – 46.60 percent
Charar-e-Shareef – 53.23 percent
Channapora – 22.97 percent
Eidgah – 25.68 percent
Ganderbal – 46.81 percent
Habba Kadal – 13.25 percent
Hazratbal – 26.28 percent
Kangan (ST) – 55.55 percent
Khan Sahib – 48.50 percent
Khanyar – 23.06 percent
Lal Chowk – 26.01 percent
Pampore – 38.10 percent
Pulwama – 39.25 percent
Rajpora – 42.80 percent
Shopian – 45.04 percent
Tral – 37.52 percent
Zadibal – 27.52 percent
Overall: 38.3percent was revealed finally .
There are 24 candidates in the fray in this constituency although the main contest is between Syed Ruhullah Mehdi of the National Conference (NC), Waheed ur Rehman Parra of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Mohd Ashraf Mir of the J&K Apni Party.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the total turnout for the seat was around 14.43 per cent, while in 2014, it was 25.86 per cent.
The issue of hiked electricity bills was also on mind .
This time, there was significant increase in turnout in most of the assembly segments of the Srinagar Lok Sabha seat.
Whatever would be the final result the voting numbers are impressive, perhaps expectation would have been bit more.

Srinagar Loksabha Constituency Profile, 29 April cover story

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Srinagar Loksabha Constituency Profile
News Kashmir Analysis
Srinagar City is the soul of Jammu and Kashmir and one of the ancient cities of India.
The Prestigious Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency is one of the five Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in the Srinagar district of Jammu and Kashmir, India.
After Delimitation exercise new Assembly constituencies have been added and some deleted. The Srinagar Loksabha Constituency now looks like this .
AC No. AC Name District
17 Kangan (ST) Ganderbal
18 Ganderbal
19 Hazratbal Srinagar
20 Khanyar
21 Habba Kadal
22 Lal Chowk
23 Channapora
24 Zadibal
25 Eidgah
26 Central Shalteng
29 Khan Sahib Budgam
30 Chrar-i-Sharief
31 Chadoora
32 Pampore Pulwama
33 Tral
34 Pulwama
35 Rajpora
36 Zainapora Shopian.
As a matter of fact, On the last date of filing of nomination papers for the General Lok Sabha Elections-2024 from Srinagar Parliamentary Constituency, 22 candidates filed their nomination papers in the Office of Returning Officer.
They filed nomination papers before the Returning Officer Srinagar Parliamentary Constituency, Dr Bilal Mohi-Ud-Din Bhat, while Salman Sagar submitted his nomination papers from Jammu Kashmir National Conference as a covering candidate for his party candidate Aga Ruhullah, who first filed the nominations.
As a matter of fact, Hakikat Singh from National Panthers Party Bhim, Rakesh Handu from J&K National United Front, Amir Ahmad Bhat from Democratic Progressive Azad Party and Qaiser Sultan Ganai covering candidate of Democratic Progressive Azad Party submitted their nomination papers before the RO.
Likewise, Ashiq Hussain from Rastriya Jan Kranti Party, Mohammad Yousuf Bhat from Gana Suraksh Party, Suraya Nissar from National Republic Party of India and Farooq Ahmad Bhat from National Youth Party also filed their nominations from 02-Srinagar seat.
The expert pulse is that main contest would be between National Conference and People’s Democratic Party on the Prestigious Srinagar Loksabha seat.
The nomination events especially of NC, PDP and Apni Party marked spirited displays, witnessing car rallies, roadshows, and folk performances, transforming the area near returning officer in Srinagar into a vibrant political arena.
It was heartening for democracy that collective energy of the supporters, manifested in dances to the tunes of party anthems and the rhythmic beats of traditional drums (‘Dhol’), lent an air of festivity to the occasion filing of nomination.
Recently, In an interview with News Kashmir Srinagar Candidate for National Conference
Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi
affirmed focus is on that through my Election campaign I give voice to the voiceless people of Kashmir as post abrogation of Article 370 the voice of masses has been scuttled and oppressed. I want to give platform to that voice of people through my effective Election campaign.
The result would be seen later on ,my priority is a strong Election campaign to give voice to the masses.”
Interestingly, the contest for Srinagar Loksabha seat is garnering much importance.

Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha Seat Profile

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Anantnag– Rajouri Lok Sabha Seat Profile
News Kashmir Analysis
The biggest festival of democracy in the country Lok Sabha elections are on , the election campaign is on in entire country.
Jammu and Kashmir is witnessing the first major election after the abrogation of article 370.
Anantnag–Rajouri Lok Sabha seat is one of the five Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir .
The prestigious seat would go to the polls on May 7, 2024 .
Expert pulse is This constituency has contrasting demographics and shows historical voting patterns.
It is to be noted that decision by the Delimitation Commission to merge the Anantnag constituency with Rajouri and Poonch districts of Jammu region has added a new dimension to the electoral landscape. This move, viewed by many as an attempt to penetrate with more vigour nationalist feeling in Kashmir valley, underscores the strategic significance of the Anantnag-Rajouri constituency in national politics.
The glimpse of the assembly constituency shows how long , peculiar the seat is:
AC Name District
36 Zainapora Shopian
38 D. H. Pora Kulgam
39 Kulgam
40 Devsar
41 Dooru Anantnag
42 Kokernag (ST)
43 Anantnag West
44 Anantnag
45 Srigufwara-Bijbehra
46 Shangus – Anantnag East
47 Pahalgam
84 Nowshera Rajouri
85 Rajouri (ST)
86 Budhal (ST)
87 Thannamandi (ST)
88 Surankote (ST) Poonch
89 Poonch Haveli
90 Mendhar (ST).
As a matter of fact, on Thursday 18 April, 2024
Kashmir’s Anantnag town was buzzing with political activity and we saw  many leaders filing their nominations for the Lok Sabha elections. National Conference leader Mian Altaf Ahmad and former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, along with seven others, filed nomination papers for the Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat.
As a matter of fact, mighty Pir Panjal mountain splits the Anantnag constituency, pushing Rajouri and Poonch to the other side. In between is Shopian district, which has been made part of Srinagar parliament seat. For political parties and candidates, travelling from one part of the constituency to the other area for campaigning is a huge challenge.
National Conference candidate for the Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat Mian Altaf Ahmad few days back  said he is in a “comfortable situation” as he is the most acceptable candidate among the contestants on both sides of the Pir Panjal range.
“I am in a comfortable situation and I feel I am acceptable on both sides — Anantnag-Kulgam as well as Rajouri-Poonch. My assessment might be wrong, but I think the other parties contesting here do not have as much acceptability on both sides,” Ahmad told reporters here while on campaign trail.
The PDP leader and Former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti is another heavyweight in the seat ,and many affirm that Anantnag– Rajouri could be direct contest between NC and PDP.
Mehbooba Mufti echoed strong words.
This is not the time to boycott,” Mufti said in villages that have in the past seen turnout as low as five percent.
She made an appeal not just for votes but for financial help too. “Come forward and help me with whatever you can – Rs 100, Rs 200,” she said. “When I contested the Parliament elections in 2019, I had 50 lakhs in my account; today I have only Rs 22 lakh.”
We are slated in for an interesting and Exciting contest in Anantnag– Rajouri Loksabha seat.