The announcement of the Assembly polls has been welcomed by one and all with the most excited lot being the political class of Jammu and Kashmir because today most of the political representatives are expecting to be part of the first Assembly of the newly carved out UT of J&K.
As things have become clear that on October 8, the nomenclature of the new government will take shape but the big question right now is whether a freely and fairly elected government in Jammu and Kashmir will act as a true welfare state or the complexities and diverse political thoughts reaching the Assembly would play a spoilsport like the cases in the past when coalitions witnessed wedges and cracks and finally broke into pieces leaving the people to the utter state of misery and helplessness.
At this time, there is one more contentious entity in fray viz JeI, the political patch work after the elections could become more complex and it is difficult to see what is going to happen in the second week of October, after the results become public on October 8. What is to be seen is the construction of the government because at this stage drawing the lines is quite difficult because alliance and political parties are facing tough times while satisfying their leaderships especially on the issue of distribution of tickets. This chaos will definitely affect the results of the parties contesting elections and therefore the government which will take final shape in October will only tell about the future course of J&K.
The major concerns for the UT are economic instability, security lapses, and mis-governance, and therefore it is necessary that the people should show faith in one party or a single group because hung Assembly's life in J&K is very unpredictable and of course the path is also difficult. For sure, public trust in the electoral process and governance needs to be rejuvenated in J&K. The things would become clear only after the formation of the government as its structure will determine whether it can genuinely represent the people's aspirations or act as a time pass alternative.
All said and done, it is only when the new government will prioritize welfare over politics and implement reforms with transparency and accountability the real transformation could occur, till then those who are well wishers of the UT and the country can wait with their fingers crossed and keep hopes high.
