J&K Delimitation: 7 new seats to be added in Assembly polls

National

A top leader of the Apni Party has claimed that seven seats will be added in the Union Territory, four seats will be in the Kashmir division, and three in the Jammu division, as the Delimitation Commission began the delimitation exercise in Jammu and Kashmir. According to sources, the Delimitation Commission has written letters to all 20 Deputy Commissioners in J&K, requesting them to share statistics on the electorate, district composition, and Assembly constituency composition.
Ghulam Hassan Mir, senior vice-president of the Apni Party, stated that the overall number of seats in the Assembly would rise from 83 to 90.
A top BJP official in J&K stated that the process should be “balanced.” He also added it should ensure that all electoral districts receive an equal number of voters. Currently, some seats have only a few thousand votes, whereas the constituency in Jammu has over one lakh voters.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called a meeting with political parties in Jammu and Kashmir next week to examine the redrawing of Lok Sabha and Assembly constituencies in the Union Territory. It is most likely to happen on June 24. The key session could pave the way for Assembly polls in Jammu & Kashmir. Fourteen leaders from eight political parties in Jammu and Kashmir have been invited to the meeting on June 24 in Delhi, which will include Mehbooba Mufti’s People’s Democratic Party and the National Conference. This will be the Prime Minister’s first meeting with all of Jammu and Kashmir’s major parties since August 2019.