J&k CM Abdullah Sees Supreme Court as Barrier Against Voter List Deletions, Recalls Delimitation ‘Tampering’

Srinagar: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday warned that Jammu and Kashmir’s upcoming Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls could be misused to “tamper” with elections, stressing that only Supreme Court scrutiny may prevent mass voter deletions.

He said the apex court’s proceedings on Form 6 could make it “slightly difficult” for authorities to remove names from the voter list.

Abdullah argued that the region had already suffered manipulation through the delimitation exercise, which he alleged was designed to benefit the BJP.

“We have not forgotten the delimitation exercise yet. The sole purpose of that was to help the BJP. The same will likely happen with the SIR,” he told reporters in Srinagar.

However, the chief minister also acknowledged Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s long political journey, remarking, “It is not easy to continuously win elections for 25 years  first at the state level and then at the central level. On behalf of my colleagues, I extend congratulations to him.”

“People here already feel sidelined after delimitation. If names are deleted again, it will break trust in the system. We want fair elections, not selective removals. Court must ensure transparency,’ said a local student.

Abdullah defended the INDIA bloc’s agitation against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, dismissing BJP’s claim that allegations were fabricated.

“If it were fabricated, why don’t they act against the newspaper that reported it? No defamation case has been filed,” he argued, adding that the logical conclusion was that the reports were accurate.

On governance matters, Abdullah confirmed that recruitment rules were nearly finalized after contradictions in earlier drafts were resolved.

“Due diligence is being carried out to eliminate ambiguities, and I believe they will be notified very soon,” he explained.

When asked about the bureaucratic transfers made by the lieutenant governor earlier in the day, he said, “Surely, he must have made these transfers thoughtfully. Now, whichever departments these officers have joined, we will work together with them,”.

Regarding the expansion of his council of ministers, Abdullah said consultations with NC president Farooq Abdullah would follow his return from the GST Council meeting in Delhi.

Meanwhile, the CEO of J&K has announced weekend voter enrollment drives under the slogan “No Voter To Be Left Behind”. INDI bloc continues its “Save Democracy March” in Jammu, demanding accountability from the Election Commission.

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