Parties eye vital support from panchs, sarpanches
AVINAV SHARMA. Updated: 3/20/2019 11:51:24 AM
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JAMMU: With less than a month remaining for the 2019 Parliamentary elections to begin, the national parties, BJP and the Congress have started chalking out their strategy to win over the support of panchs and sarpanchs of the state which may prove to be vital in the elections keeping view their numbers.
Reliable sources in both BJP and Congress said that they are chalking out their election strategy focusing panchs and sarpanchs as their support holds the key in deciding election results.
It may be mentioned here that panchs and sarpanchs were elected on non-party basis but their support could prove to be crucial in the victory and defeat of candidates in the Lok Sabha elections keeping in view large number of halqas (constituencies) represented by them.
As per official figures available with The News Now, there are around 35,000 panch halqas
(constituencies) and around 4499 sarpanch halqas in Jammu and Kashmir. Therefore, the support of panchs and sarpanchs to any political party holds key in deciding results of the elections.
“Although, panchs and sarpanchs were elected on non-party basis but most of them are affiliated to one political party or the other and, therefore, we are chalking out our election strategy to win over their support,” former deputy chief minister Kavinder Gupta told The News Now.
In this regard, a meeting of BJP leaders was also held at the residence of Kavinder Gupta in which the party leaders discussed party’s election strategy and also how to approach panchs and sarpanchs and win over their support during elections.
Former ministers, MLAs and senior leaders will be assigned duties to reach out to panchs and sarpanchs and win over their support during elections, sources in the BJP said.
Meanwhile, sources in the Congress Party also informed that the party is devising its election strategy focusing panchs and sarpanchs.
“During Lok Sabha elections, it is not possible to reach out to each and every individual and therefore, panchs and sarpanchs could play an important role in their respective halqas to support a particular political party,” a senior Congress leader said adding, “The party will approach like-minded panchs and sarpanchs for which strategy is being chalked out”.
Updated On 3/20/2019 11:52:55 AM