Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir): With Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency of Jammu and Kashmir witnessing a record voter turnout in nearly six decades, in the fifth phase of voting on Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi complimented the voters for their “unbreakable commitment to democratic values”.
“Compliments to my sisters and brothers of Baramulla for their unbreakable commitment to democratic values. Such active participation is a great trend,” PM Modi wrote in a post on X while reacting to a post by Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha over the “encouraging” turnout in Baramulla.
“High voter turnout, over 58% in Baramulla Parliamentary Constituency, is very encouraging and shows the people's determination and unwavering faith in democracy. I congratulate and thank the people of Baramulla for joining the Maha Kumbh of our democracy in large numbers. I appreciate the hard work of all the stakeholders to ensure free, fair, accessible, inclusive & peaceful conduct of voting. Happy to see young voters expressing and celebrating their unshakable faith in democratic values. Hope this positive trend will continue in the next phase,” Sinha wrote in the post.
Baramulla Lok Sabha constituency on Monday recorded nearly 60 percent voting marking the highest turnout since the 1967 parliamentary election. Addressing a press conference in Srinagar soon after the polls concluded, Chief Electoral Officer Jammu and Kashmir, PK Pole said that out of over 17.38 lakhs registered voters, approximately 10.43 lakhs cast their votes for the 22 candidates, who were in the fray for Baramulla seat. He said that the polling remained peaceful, with no negative incidents reported throughout the day. “The situation has improved significantly over the last four years, contributing to the high voter turnout in this election. Notably, Sopore, which previously never saw turnout exceed single digits, experienced a substantial increase. Compared to just 4% in 2019, today's voter turnout in Sopore was recorded at 44.36%," he said.
Notable contenders for the Baramulla Lok Sabha seat include former Chief Minister and National Conference (NC) Vice-President Omar Abdullah, former minister and People's Conference (PC) President Sajad Gani Lone, Independent candidate Engineer Rashid and People's Democratic Party's (PDP) Muhammad Fayaz Mir.
The Election Commission of India had established 2,103 polling stations in the Baramulla parliamentary constituency, with 905 booths in the Baramulla district alone identified as critical. The polling stations were equipped with 4,206 CCTV cameras for live webcasting, along with 50 additional cameras, at the main entrances.
The Baramulla constituency encompasses 18 Assembly segments, including six in Kupwara (Karnah, Trehgam, Kupwara, Lolab, Handwara, and Langate), seven in Baramulla (Sopore, Rafiabad, Uri, Baramulla, Gulmarg, Wagoora-Kreeri, and Pattan), three in Bandipora (Sonwari, Bandipora and Gurez), and two in Budgam post-delimitation.
