Ready For J&K Polls Anytime Now, Centre Tells SC

Solicitor general Tushar Mehta stated On Thursday that the Central government is prepared for elections in Jammu and Kashmir at any moment.

Centre’s remarks came two days after Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud asked the Attorney General and the Solicitor General of India (SG) to get instructions from the government on whether there is a time frame in view of making Jammu and Kashmir a state again.

During the hearing on pleas challenging the abrogation of Article 370 on Thursday, SG Mehta, on behalf of Centre, said the updating of voter list was going on, adding that it’s substantially complete and just a little is left.

“There are three elections which are due. The three tier Panchayat Raj System has been introduced post 2019…Law and order events- stone pelting etc., have been reduced by 97.2 per cent. These figures are all relevant for purpose of when to hold the elections. Security person casualty is reduced by 65.9%. These are factors agencies would take into consideration,” SG Mehta said.

SG Mehta, during the hearing on Wednesday, said that “exact timeline of returning the statehood is something that we can’t surely tell”.

“Peace doesn’t only come with police action” and added that schemes have been brought in, various projects have been launched…Though UT status is temporary for J&K, the exact timeline of returning the statehood is something that we can’t surely tell,” SG Mehta said.