| News Details |
| Ladakhi Students hopeful of positive response from ECI | | Raza files papers | Jammu, April 20, (Scoop News)-(Scoop News)_Awaiting a formal approval of Election Commission of India (ECI) of setting of special polling booths for over 10,000 students and scholars studying outside their
native place, the ECI has yet to take any decision.
“Our office has received a representation from these (Ladakhi) students for setting up of special polling stations for them outside their constituency”, said an official, requesting not to be named.
“As per the People Representation Act, no polling station can be set up outside the constituency. However, our decision will be based on the merit of this particular case in consonance with the provisions of the Act”, he added.
“We have not taken any formal decision till date as we have other priorities to attend to these days”, the official argued.
Ladakh parliamentary constituency is going to polls on May 7 this year and the region is still cut of form rest of the country since December last. Beacon authorities are working overtime to clear snow from
11,550 feet high Zojila Pass, 115 km east of Srinagar, the summer capital of the Himalayan region.
All Ladakh Students Joint Action Committee (ALSJAC) has been pleading with ECI to set up special polling booths for them in view of closure of the surface link between Srinagar and Leh.
ALSJAC in their representation had appealed ECI through District Election Officer (DEO) Leh and Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) to set up special polling booths in Jammu and Delhi or airlift all students above 18 years of age to exercise their right of franchise as enshrined in the constitution.
“I want to vote, this is my first time to exercise my democratic right but can’t fulfill this constitutional obligation because the airfare
is unaffordable and the road is still non operational”, says Stanzin,student from Ladakh, studying in a college at Jammu.
Meanwhile, Ghulam Raza, a former lawmaker from Zanskar, has filed his nomination papers as an independent candidate. Supported by an
influential religious group, Imam Khomeini Memorial Trust (IKMT) Kargil, Raza, who also relinquished the post of president District Congress Committee (DCC), complained that, “since 1967, the party has
never fielded its candidate from Kargil district for the Ladakh parliamentary constituency”.
“I resigned as DCC president, after party high command turned a blind eye to our pleadings to field a candidate from Kargil this time”, he pointed out.
Raza said the people of Kargil pushed me to contest the election as an independent candidate.
“We shall be holding a meeting of our apex committee within a couple of days and decide about our manifesto”, Raza said.
... |
| |
|
|
Share this Story |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|