BDC polls: High turnout in J&K due to Article 370 move, says PM Modi

TIL Desk/National/New Delhi/ Prime Minister Narendra Modi has credited the decision to scrap the special status of Jammu and Kashmir for the high voter turnout in the state’s first-ever Block Development Council (BDC) polls. “Thanks to the decisions of the Indian Parliament, young and dynamic representatives will shape the destiny of the people of all regions of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said in a tweet.

The first-ever BDC polls in Jammu and Kashmir recorded a 98.3 per cent voter turnout on Thursday. Twenty seven candidates, including 22 from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), were elected unopposed. The Congress, the National Conference (NC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) had boycotted the election.

“I once again congratulate MPs across party lines for the historic decisions on J&K. It would make India’s Parliament proud that due to their historic decision in August this year, the people of J&K have been able to exercise their democratic right with exceptional enthusiasm, as seen in the historic turnout of 98% that too without violence or disturbance,” the prime minister said in another tweet.