Days Of Stone Pelting Gone, Kashmir Now Witnesses Change Amid Elections

New Delhi: A significant change is undertaken in the Kashmir valley for the first time in the last three decades, election campaign rallies are being held in areas once considered a stronghold of terrorists and separatists. Election campaign rallies are being held from Srinagar's Lal Chowk Ghantaghar to the city's downtown and far-flung areas of South Kashmir. 

These are the same areas that were infamous for stone pelting, shutdown, and terrorism, and were the stronghold of separatists. Now, a different scenario is unfolding in these areas. Many election rallies are going on and youths and women are participating in these election rallies, asserting that the electoral process is the path of democracy, and our vote is the only way that can take us to our goal.

While talking to the people witnessing the change in Kasmir's situation, Aamir Ahmed, a local person, said, "Earlier no one used to participate, you know what was happening here, people were tagged as stone pelters, and people were very upset. Boys were going to drug camps. Now we are telling everyone that politics is also a platform where we can talk. Not with bullets, not with stones, not with pellets. Whatever happens in the parliament will occur through talks."

Other local people named Naeema said, "Vote is the sole means, it is our power, yet our power is being squandered, there are so many educated people, today we are fighting for them."

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Electoral Officer P K Pole said that the campaigning in Kashmir valley is getting people's huge response. 

 "The election atmosphere in Kashmir valley, campaigning and people's participation and road shows are getting a huge response. The atmosphere of normalcy across the region is an indication that the voting percentage will be much higher than the voting percentage of 2019 elections,"  P K Pole said.