Srinagar, Oct 23 : With MLAs of Jammu & Kashmir set to vote on Friday to elect four members of the Rajya Sabha, all eyes are on the outcome of the fourth seat, where the National Conference and the BJP each have 28 MLAs.
The MLAs will cast their votes at three separate polling booths set up in the Legislative Assembly complex between 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM, according to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO). The counting of votes will take place at 5:00 PM and is expected to conclude within minutes.
While the National Conference’s victory on three seats is a foregone conclusion, the result of the fourth seat is being closely watched, where the BJP’s advantage has diminished following support for the National Conference from the Congress, PDP, and independent MLA Shabir Kulley.
Based on current political equations, National Conference candidates have the support of 57 MLAs, including 41 NC MLAs, six Congress MLAs, six independents, three PDP MLAs, and one CPI(M) MLA, while the BJP has 28 MLAs. The choices of two MLAs -Mehraj Malik and Sheikh Khursheed – remain undisclosed. Malik, who is currently in detention under the Public Safety Act, cast his vote on Monday inside Kathua district jail.
The victory of National Conference candidates Choudhary Muhammad Ramzan and Sajjad Kichloo on the first two seats is certain, as each is expected to secure 57 votes against the BJP’s 28.
Unlike the first two seats, a combined election is being held for the third and fourth seats, where three candidates- Gurwinder Singh Oberoi, Imran Dar of the National Conference, and Sat Sharma of the BJP – are locked in a direct contest. The two highest vote-getters in this combined election will be declared winners.
For the third and fourth seats, MLAs of the ruling alliance would split their votes between Gurwinder Singh Oberoi and Imran Dar, while all BJP MLAs would vote for Sat Sharma.
It is expected that the National Conference will allocate 29 votes to Oberoi and the remaining 28 to Imran Dar, with the BJP also holding an equal strength of 28 votes.
The composition of the voting blocs- specifically, which MLAs will vote for which candidate -within the ruling alliance for the third and fourth Rajya Sabha seats will be interesting to watch, given that independents are not required to display their votes.
Unlike party-affiliated MLAs, independent legislators are not required to show their marked ballot papers to authorized polling agents. The J&K Assembly currently has seven independent MLAs
