Mehbooba Mufti alleges unfair treatment of PDP polling agents ahead of voting

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti alleged on Friday, 24 May, that the polling agents and workers of her party are being asked to report to police stations ahead of the voting for the Lok Sabha polls on Saturday.

Mufti is contesting the election from the Anantnag-Rajouri seat, which is scheduled to go to polls on Saturday.

"PDP polling agents and workers both are being asked to report to local police stations. Why are the people of South Kashmir being punished for showing their faith in democracy? @ECISVEEP @manojsinha_ @JmuKmrPolice" the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister said in a post on X.

Meanwhile, the PDP has appealed to the Election Commission for an urgent intervention to ensure free and fair elections. In a letter to the chief election commissioner, the party said it seeks the commission's immediate attention towards "a grave matter that threatens the integrity" of the polls.

"It has come to our notice that the police in Anantnag, Shopian, and Kulgam have initiated a campaign of terror against our polling agents from the Jammu and Kashmir People's Democratic Party (PDP). From this evening, numerous polling agents have been either forcibly taken from their residences or summoned to police stations, where they are being held in illegal confinement," the party letter said.

At numerous places, especially in the Anantnag district, the workers are being "threatened and harassed" in order to deter them from casting their votes, it alleged.

"This systematic targeting of PDP polling agents suggests a deliberate attempt by the state administration, acting at the behest of candidates contesting as proxies for the ruling Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) to undermine the democratic process and ensure our defeat," the PDP alleged.

The PDP appealed to the commission to direct the state police to release all detained polling agents of the PDP without delay and ensure that no further "hindrances" are created by the state administration that could affect the conduct of free and fair elections.