Udhampur Deputy Commissioner Saloni Rai on Friday appealed to voters in Jammu and Kashmir to exercise their right to vote without any fear.
Speaking on the preparations for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections 2024, Rai told ANI, “The elections will be conducted in the first phase in Udhampur constituency. We have assured all the facilities in all of our polling stations.”
“I appeal to the people to exercise their right to vote… We would like to target more than 90 per cent of voting in Udhampur constituency,” she further said.
According to the Lok Sabha elections dates announcement, voting in Jammu and Kashmir will be held in five phases and the counting of the votes will take place on June 4. The results of the Jammu & Kashmir Lok Sabha elections 2024 will also be announced on June 4.
The Lok Sabha polls in the Union Territory will be held in the first five phases on April 19 (Udhampur), April 26 (Jammu), May 7 (Anantnag-Rajouri), May 13 (Srinagar) and May 20 (Baramulla). The counting of votes will be taken up on June 4.
On Thursday, Union Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh had filed his nomination papers for the Udhampur-Kathua Lok Sabha seat. The Congress is yet to name its candidate for the seat.
Earlier, Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) chairman Ghulam Nabi Azad requested the Election Commission and the Centre to hold the Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir one month after the Lok Sabha elections.
“I would like to request the Election Commission and Government of India to conduct the Vidhan Sabha elections, one month after the Lok Sabha elections,” Azad said.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) had registered victory on three seats with a vote share of 46.7 per cent while Congress did not get a single seat.
The Election Commission on March 16 announced the schedule for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. (ANI)
