EC observers interact with representatives of political parties in Jammu & Kashmir

Date :16-Mar-2019

SRINAGAR,

(PTI)

THE three special observers, who were appointed by the Election Commission (EC) to suggest when Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir can be held, interacted with representatives of various political parties here on Thursday.

The three observers -- Noor Mohammed, Vinod Zutshi and A S Gill -- on Thursday reached Srinagar for a two-day visit to assess the situation in Jammu and Kashmir on real time basis to enable the poll panel take a call on holding Assembly elections in the State, officials said.

They also met the officials of the State Government to get a briefing on the security situation for holding elections in the State. The team will hold similar interactions with representatives of political parties and officials in Jammu and Kashmir on Friday, the officials said.

While announcing the schedule for the Lok Sabha elections on Sunday, the poll panel had said that Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir cannot be held simultaneously due to security concerns flagged by the Centre.

Representatives of the PDP, Congress, BJP and other parties met the observers, while the National Conference (NC), CPI(M) leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami, Peoples Democratic Front (PDF) Chairman Hakeem Mohamad Yaseen and Democratic Party Nationalist (DPN) President Ghulam Hassan Mir boycotted the meeting. The NC decided not to meet the EC observers, saying the party has nothing more to add to its demand of having simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in the State.