Jammu and Kashmir’s regional parties — the ruling National Conference (NC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) — joined a Congress-led protest in Srinagar on Saturday under the opposition INDIA bloc’s ‘Save Democracy Week’ campaign, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over alleged fraud in the voter lists.
According to The Hindu, dozens of NC and PDP workers, including women, carrying their party flags assembled at the Congress party headquarters in Srinagar. The protesters attempted to march towards Lal Chowk but were disallowed by security forces, after which they staged a symbolic protest inside the Congress office compound. The demonstrators carried placards of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and CEC Kumar, and demanded the CEC’s resignation over what they described as ‘vote chori’ (vote theft).
Joint protests by the INDIA bloc parties were also held in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal and south Kashmir’s Anantnag on the same day, according to the report. Gayas Ahmad, a protester in Ganderbal, told reporters that workers of the NC, PDP and CPI(M) were holding the protest jointly and peacefully, seeking an inquiry into the CEC’s functioning and his resignation, and that those responsible for vote theft should face the law.
The campaign, also billed as ‘Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao’ (Save Vote, Save Country), is a nationwide opposition movement targeting the Election Commission of India over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, after reports that millions of voters faced exclusion or list modifications, according to the Lokmat Times. Leaders at the Srinagar protest accused the Centre of undermining democratic institutions and urged people to unite in defence of the Constitution.
Meanwhile, J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti drew parallels between the security restrictions imposed in Delhi and the situation in Kashmir in 2019. In a post on X on October 9, Mr. Abdullah wrote, ‘Kashmir model has been exported to Delhi. Welcome to the New Delhi, modelled on New Jammu & Kashmir,’ referring to the security clampdown and internet shutdown in the national capital ahead of protests there.
Ms. Mufti, the former J&K chief minister, said in a post that ‘today’s Delhi is a chilling reminder of Kashmir after the unconstitutional abrogation of Article 370,’ when, she said, people were locked in their homes and the internet was shut down. ‘First crush the protest, then deny it ever happened. This is how enforced silence is passed off as consent,’ she added.
The protest comes amid a wider opposition campaign against the election watchdog, with INDIA bloc leaders calling on people across the country to defend democratic institutions. Security personnel were deployed in strength around the Congress headquarters to prevent the march, and the protesters eventually withdrew into the office compound.