Arjumand Shah
Srinagar, Sep 24 : With Srinagar, along with five other districts, scheduled to go for polls on Wednesday; the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir has more women voters.
Over 2.578 million voters will decide the fate of 239 candidates in the second phase of the general elections to the Legislative Assembly, scheduled for September 25.
This phase will cover 26 Assembly Constituencies (ACs) across six districts in Jammu and Kashmir, including Ganderbal, Srinagar, and Budgam in the Kashmir division, and Reasi, Rajouri, and Poonch in the Jammu region.
Srinagar district, which comprises eight assembly constituencies, has more women voters.
According to details available with the Kashmir Indepth News Service (KINS), the Zadibal segment of Srinagar has the highest number of registered voters, with 112,864 (56,408 males and 56,451 females).
The Lal Chowk constituency has 107,199 registered voters — 53,425 males, 53,773 females, and one transgender voter. In Habbakadal, there are 95,546 voters, with 47,404 males, 48,133 females, and nine third-gender voters.
The Hazratbal constituency has a voter population of 112,541, with 56,175 males and 56,366 females. The Central Shalteng assembly seat has 107,770 registered voters, of which 54,185 are male, 53,576 are female, and nine are third-gender voters.
The Khanyar constituency has 91,226 registered voters, comprising 45,407 males, 45,816 females, and three third-gender voters. Chanapora has 85,431 voters, with 42,556 males, 42,874 females, and one transgender voter. Lastly, the Eidgah assembly constituency has 61,885 registered voters, including 31,094 males and 30,789 females. There are also some third-gender voters in the district.
Despite having a higher female population, there are fewer female candidates contesting the assembly elections in Srinagar district. This includes two former MLAs, Shamima Firdous and Asiya Naqash.
Meanwhile, voting on Wednesday will decide the fate of former Chief Minister and National Conference Vice President Omar Abdullah, who is contesting from two constituencies, Budgam and Ganderbal. In Budgam, Omar is competing against the People’s Democratic Party’s Agha Syed Muntazir, cousin of NC leader and Member of Parliament Rullah Mehdi.
The fate of J&K BJP Chief Ravinder Raina, who is contesting from the Nowshera seat, will also be decided in this phase. The BJP chief is facing a tough challenge from former MLC Surinder Choudhary, who is contesting on an NC ticket.
Other prominent candidates whose fates will be decided in the second phase include J&K Congress President Tariq Karra from Central-Shalteng; Apni Party Chief Altaf Bukhari from Chanapora. (KINS)
