The erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir was carved into two following the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, which created the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh.
A subsequent delimitation exercise, which was finalised in May 2022, saw the addition of six seats in Jammu division, and one seat in the Kashmir division, taking the total number of Assembly constituencies in the UT of J&K to 90. This exercise also paved the way for elections to be held in the erstwhile state, which had last seen polls a decade ago in 2014.
This time, of the 90 seats going to the polls, seven are reserved for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and nine are reserved for Scheduled Tribes (STs). While the erstwhile state had some seats reserved for SCs, the seats reserved for STs were added in the delimitation exercise of 2022.
The Srigufwara - Bijbehara constituency in the district of Anantnag is one of the 90 constituencies in J&K that is going to polls this time, which are being held alongside Assembly elections in the state of Haryana.
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Background to the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections:
This is the first time the erstwhile state is having elections since the abrogation of Article 370 by the Narendra Modi government. The BJP has throughout maintained that this time around, Article 370 will not be making a comeback, while Rahul Gandhi and the Congress have pledged that they will put pressure on the Centre to restore statehood to J&K.
The J&K polls, being held in three phases, have seen Mehbooba Mufti's PDP emerge as the most likely kingmaker. The party chief announced that there will be a 'secular' government there, indicating a likelihood of allying with the National Conference if needed to prevent a BJP government from coming to power in the UT.
Analysts have predicted that NC is likely to secure a majority in the Kashmir region, while BJP is likely to gain a foothold in the Hindu-dominated Jammu area.
However, with the Congress-NC alliance showing signs of unease, there is a likelihood of the 2014 election scenario playing out again and the NC siding with the BJP cannot be completely dismissed.
Results for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Elections 2024 will be declared on October 8, 2024.
The total Assembly strength for Jammu and Kashmir is 119 seats, but only 90 go to the polls, as 24 seats are reserved for Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK) and five members are nominated by the Lieutenant-Governor.