Amir Tantray
Jammu, Apr 20 : A day after the first phase of polling on Udhampur parliamentary constituency ended, the election on Udhampur Lok Sabha seat remained a hot topic of every individual in and outside the constituency.
From towns to villages, men and women, young and old, everyone was talking as who has the edge on this seat. Many were doing calculations as to who has got how many votes from which place and whether their candidate will win or not.
According to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), there is a tough fight between Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) candidate Dr. Jitendra Singh and Congress party nominee Choudhary Lal Singh. Both the candidates are looking forward for getting their third term as Member Parliament (MP) and they have put their best foot forward to get it done.
People who voted for BJP were of the opinion that their candidate will emerge winner whereas those who voted for the Congress party believe they have done what former union minister Ghulam Nabi Azad couldn’t do in 2014 general elections.
Even the people from outside the constituency were calling their friends and colleagues in different parts of Udhampur constituency to get a feel as who is expected to lead from where. After putting hectic efforts, they ended their conversation with a word that June 4 is not far away and everybody will come to know who will emerge as winner.
Meanwhile, throughout the night polling parties kept reaching to their respective areas to submit electronic voting machines, VVPATs and other election related material to the officials in strong rooms. From areas like the upper reaches of Bani and Basholi in Kathua district, vehicles carrying the polling staff reached Kathua town in the morning. In Udhampur, polling parties from Dudu Basantgarh reached their respective destinations in the morning and same was the case for Ramban, Doda and Kishtwar districts where polling staff reached their destination after sunrise.
From Marwah and Warwan areas of Kishtwar district, polling parties were airlifted to Kishtwar town in the morning and they submitted their material today.
The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Jammu and Kashmir said that the elections were held peacefully all across. “The polling for First Phase of General Elections to 18thLok Sabha in Parliamentary Constituency Udhampur has concluded peacefully,” CEO said in a statement issued late last night. According to the CEO, 68.27 percent polling was held in the constituency and it may go up after collecting all the information from polling parties coming back from remote areas—(KNO)
