In the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections, voters registered their mandate in three phases. The third and final phase of voting was completed on Tuesday. Counting will take place on October 8. In the third phase on Tuesday, 40 assembly seats in seven constituencies recorded a turnout of 66.56%. The turnout in the third phase was higher than that in the first and second phases, which directly means something that has to be understood. The voting rate in the first phase was 61.38%, and the voting rate in the second phase was 57.31%. Of the 40 seats in the third phase, 24 are from Jammu division and 16 from Kashmir Valley. This means that massive voting has taken place in Jammu region, which is evident. Therefore, judging from the atmosphere created in Jammu and Kashmir this time, it can be said that this time the Union Territory with a majority Muslim population may have a Hindu prime minister. There are many other reasons why Jammu and Kashmir could have its first Hindu Prime Minister this time, no matter who forms the government.
In the Republic of India, any citizen of the country can hold the office from chief minister to prime minister, governor to president. This is guaranteed by the Constitution. This is the reason why the country’s minority (Muslims) twice held the highest office such as the President. Although Muslims are a minority, they have become chief ministers of many states in the country. CM has served as Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Bihar, Bengal and other places. Based on this, the issue of the Hindu chief minister has intensified in Jammu region in this Jammu and Kashmir assembly election. In the evolving political situation in Jammu and Kashmir, whichever party wins the election, this time has created a situation where the Chief Minister here can also be a Hindu, let us see what is the reason for this. This thing is being said.
1- Why is there an atmosphere of Hindu CM in Jammu this time?
From its admission to the Indian Union in 1947 until March 5, 1965, the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir was known as the Prime Minister. Except for Justice Mahal Chand Mahajan, the first prime minister of Jammu and Kashmir, all other prime ministers came from the valley and were Muslims. Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad, Khwaja Shamsuddin and Ghulam Mohammad Sadiq served as Prime Ministers of Jammu and Kashmir. Later the post of Prime Minister was changed to Chief Minister and Sardar Riasat (President) was renamed Governor. After this big change, of all the Chief Ministers of Jammu and Kashmir, one was a Muslim and the other was from the Kashmir Valley. Ghulam Nabi Azad is the only one from Doda district of Jammu.
In fact, according to the 2011 census, Jammu and Kashmir is home to 68.8% Muslims, who mostly live in the Kashmir Valley. About 28.8% are Hindus, the majority of whom live in Jammu. Generally, Hindu candidates won Jammu Assembly seats and Lok Sabha seats. In Jammu region, not only the BJP and Congress but also the National Conference occupied some seats. But this time, BJP candidate from Jammu North district and state vice-president Sham Lal Sharma appealed to the voters of Jammu division to let the party candidate win so that the Union Territory can elect the first Chief Minister of Dogra Hindus. Not only that, he said in another show that if Maharashtra can have a Muslim chief minister, why can’t Jammu and Kashmir have a Hindu? The Hindu population here accounts for 32%. In fact, what Shyam Lal Sharma said after the results of this election was not an exaggeration.
In fact, the situation in Jammu has become much weaker than in Kashmir in recent years. Jammu is not even the winter capital of Kashmir anymore. The number of pilgrims has reduced as other trains now stop at Katra. Therefore, people here hope that decisions will be taken in favor of Jammu only if someone from Jammu region becomes the chief minister.
2- If a hung parliament is formed, the BJP will be in the forefront.
In fact, you can view Shyam Lal Sharma’s statement as a strategy of the BJP. Because the Hindu votes are expected to be divided between the BJP and the Congress. The BJP is trying to win the maximum number of seats in Jammu division, which has 43 assembly seats. In fact, the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly has a history of suspended assemblies. If a hung Assembly is formed, the chief minister is likely to be from the BJP. Because the Bharatiya Janata Party is also expected to get the support of 5 nominated MPs. In the 2002 parliamentary elections, the National Assembly was reduced from 57 to 28 seats in the 87-member parliament. The Congress won 20 seats and the People’s Democratic Party won 16 seats, after which the Congress, People’s Democratic Party and some smaller parties jointly formed the government.
The 2008 parliamentary elections also had inconclusive results, resulting in the National Assembly and Congress having to form a government together. Amid growing differences between political parties in the valley, leaders in Jammu have begun to believe that Jammu too can have its own chief minister. The BJP won 25 seats in Jammu in the 2014 elections and Hindu voters rallied behind the party. The Bharatiya Janata Party formed the government along with the People’s Democratic Party. Apparently, the BJP must have done this to take root in the state. Now the BJP has openly stated that if the party wins with an absolute majority, the chief minister will be from Jammu.
3- Even if a Congress government is formed, there is a possibility of a Hindu chief minister.
Jammu and Kashmir held elections for the first time after the new delimitation. There are 90 seats in the parliamentary elections. Of these, 47 seats are in Kashmir and 43 in Jammu. Before delimitation, Jammu region had fewer seats than Kashmir region. Therefore, the balance remains tilted towards Kashmir. Kashmir is now ahead by just four seats. Hence, it increases the chances of becoming the Chief Minister of Jammu. With this, Jammu and Kashmir has now become almost equal. The situation may be different if the BJP or the Congress wins all 30 Hindu-dominated seats in Jammu region. If the BJP succeeds in winning a total of 35 seats, then it can get the support of five more MLAs appointed under the Lieutenant Governor quota, but the BJP will still need around 5 to 7 seats to gain a complete majority. To this end, the BJP has braced itself for the possibility of a post-poll alliance. But if Congress gets a majority of seats in Jammu region, the number of Hindu MLAs is likely to be almost equal to the number of Muslim MLAs. In this case, both the Congress and the National Assembly wanted a Hindu as the chief minister. This will happen as both parties want that the BJP should not become strong in Jammu and Kashmir.
