Chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Friday asserted the Election Commission was committed to conducting Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir at the earliest, but said the dates would be announced after another assessment of security and troop availability.

This was a virtual repetition of what Kumar had said five months ago.

An EC delegation, led by Kumar, had arrived in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday on a two-day visit to review poll preparedness. It held discussions with chief secretary Atal Dullo and police chief R.R. Swain on Friday. The EC delegation included election commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and S.S. Sandhu.

At a media conference in Jammu, Kumar was asked whether the commission would hold polls before the September 30 deadline set by the Supreme Court, or go back to the court if some changes were required. He offered no firm commitment.

“Time is absolutely right. We are ready to build on old achievements (successful Lok Sabha polls in the region). Now, there will be a review in Delhi about the availability of forces.
After that, you will be informed. The deadlines will also be kept in mind,” he said.

Kumar said the state-level review had been completed.

“(The Amarnath) Yatra too will be complete after (August) 19. We will make a security assessment and (an) assessment of the requirements of forces (to be done) in Delhi. And as is the tradition, through the medium of media, you will be the first to be informed,” Kumar said.

During an earlier visit in March, Kumar had said something similar — that the commission was in favour of early Assembly elections but the final decision would be taken after “thorough consultations with the security agencies” and political parties.

“The majority of the political parties we met in Srinagar and Jammu demanded that the Assembly and Lok Sabha polls be held simultaneously. We will take a final call after a thorough security review and consultations with the political parties,” he had said.

Asked about the fresh challenges that have emerged after the parliamentary polls, such as a surge in militancy in Jammu, Kumar said these would not be allowed to interfere in the poll process.

“All parties said in one voice that there should be early elections. There were parliamentary elections in which we saw a spectacle (of good participation) after decades. We have to build on that, there is no doubt about it,” Kumar said.

“All the officers here said they were ready for elections; nobody said they had any issues. There are issues but it is not like there can’t be elections, no matter what the security is like.

“Its challenges are there. Some small changes have taken place to interfere with the environment after the Parliament polls. But they cannot interfere in holding elections in any way. They cannot become (an) issue (for) postponing it. The administration should be capable of dealing with any situation, and it is.”

Kumar said that internal or external forces would not be allowed to derail the elections.

Referring to the upcoming elections in other states, the CEC said their dates depended on when the terms of the individual Assemblies ended.

Assembly polls have not been held in Jammu and Kashmir since 2014.