Ishtiyaq Kar
Jammu, Feb 05 (KINS): The Election Commission of India (ECI) is soon to conduct by-polls for the Budgam and Nagrota Assembly constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir, which are due before April this year.
Sources told news gathering agency KINS that while the elections were initially planned alongside the Delhi Assembly polls, adverse winter conditions in Kashmir led to their deferment.
“By-polls for two Assembly constituencies are under active consideration of the ECI,” sources said.
When KINS contacted Jammu and Kashmir’s Chief Electoral Officer P. K. Pole, about the by-polls for these constituencies, he said that ECI holds the final authority to announce these elections.
Both seats fell vacant in October 2024. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah resigned from the Budgam constituency on October 21 after choosing to retain his Ganderbal seat.
The Nagrota seat became vacant following the demise of BJP stalwart Devinder Singh Rana on October 31.
As per Section 151A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, any vacant seat must be filled through by-election within six months of the vacancy. The ECI needs to conduct these elections before the April this year
With the 90-member J&K Assembly currently reduced to 88, the bypolls will restore its strength to 90. Furthermore, five nominations by the Lieutenant Governor—two women MLAs, two Kashmiri migrants (including one woman), and one Pakistan-occupied Jammu & Kashmir (PoJK) refugee—are still pending, which would bring the House to its full strength of 95.
The National Conference (NC) remains the single-largest party with 41 MLAs, followed by the BJP with 28. Congress holds six seats, while the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has three. The bypolls are expected to be a litmus test for all parties ahead of the next general elections in J&K.
Reports had suggested that the BJP may field Devinder Singh Rana’s daughter, Devyani Rana, as its candidate for the Nagrota seat. The NC, however, has not yet disclosed its candidate for either constituency. In the 2024 J&K elections, Omar Abdullah had won the Budgam seat by defeating Muntazir Mehdi by over 18,000 votes, while Devinder Singh Rana secured Nagrota with a margin of 30,472 votes.
Meanwhile, there is no clarity on elections to the four vacant Rajya Sabha seats from J&K, which have remained unfilled since February 2021 due to the absence of a Legislative Assembly.
Even after the new Assembly was constituted in mid-October, the ECI has yet to announce the schedule for these elections.
“The Rajya Sabha Secretariat must refer the vacancies to the ECI. The process is conducted by the Legislative Assembly Secretary, who serves as the Returning Officer,” a senior official explained.
Given the current Assembly composition, an alliance of NC, Congress, and Independents could potentially secure three out of the four Rajya Sabha seats, while the BJP is expected to win one. In the last Rajya Sabha elections in February 2015, the then PDP-BJP alliance had won three seats, while one seat went to Ghulam Nabi Azad, who was with the Congress at the time.
The elections for these four seats must be completed, as per procedural requirements. However, with no formal announcement yet, uncertainty persists over when the elections will be held.(KINS)
By-polls for Budgam, Nagrota Assembly constituencies soon; uncertainty continues over 4 RS seats
