Polling for Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat deferred to 25 May

The election to the redrawn Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat, which was slated to go to polls on 7 May, was postponed to 25 May by the Election Commission of India (ECI).

This comes after several leaders, including Jammu and Kashmir BJP unit chief Ravinder Raina, Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party chief Altaf Bukhari, People's Conference leader Imran Ansari, and others had approached the ECI requesting a rescheduling of the polls to the seat owing to adverse weather conditions. 

The ECI had asked the Jammu and Kashmir administration to immediately submit a detailed report on road conditions, weather, and accessibility to the region which covers parts of south Kashmir and areas in Poonch and Rajouri in the Jammu region.  

The official notification said the polls will be held on 25 May. Former chief ministers of erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah (National Conference) and Mehbooba Mufti (PDP) had urged the ECI last week to not postpone the polls.       

The constituency was scheduled to go to polls in the third phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha election on 7 May to decide the fate of 21 candidates, including Mehbooba Mufti, who is facing a challenge from NC leader Mian Altaf. It will now go to polls in the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha election.