It is not an easy job to ensure smooth conduct of political rallies especially during the polls in J&K because apart from providing failsafe security there are several other set protocols which badly hamper the normal flow of life in the cities being selected for such rallies. Take a simple example of the Rehri Zone created with much fanfare at Main Road Gandhi Nagar in Jammu. This food hub has been forced to remain shut for several days till now starting September this year, as a security measure, leading to colossal business losses to these vendors who fulfill bread and butter needs after paying stipulated fee to Jammu Municipal Corporation for running their trade in this part of Jammu. Isn't it unfair to take such steps in the name of security for the VVIPs, because many stakeholders in the region have to earn their livelihood on daily basis and such forced disruptions in their earning schedule even force them and their families to remain hungry for a day or the period for which their daily income sources get affected on account of political rallies and visits of VVIPs in the region.
It is quite intriguing that the same dispensation which has out-rightly rejected the idea of Darbar Move for the reasons that it was a spendthrift exercise and leads to inconvenience to the people of the region that too when things could be accomplished from anywhere through working online. Same logic could be applied to the poll rallies as the news of the same VVIPs coming to the UT several times is hogging the headlines. Every time a VVIP comes to any city of the region, there are so many things which go haywire starting from the traffic, businesses, sports and educational activities in case the rallies are in stadiums or schools, etc. The money spent on these VVIP touring is also huge, affecting the coffers having public exchequers besides inconvenience to common masses. There is no justification in forcing people into such jeopardy when in today's digital world, these VVIPs can propel the messages they want to convey to the public through electronic media channels, social media, print media and even through online platforms. The moment they will utter a sentence, the technology today is capable of making it ripple not only the place for which it has been said but to the places far and wide across the globe and even in the space, where if desired, the astronauts spending time in the space station can also have online access of the same.
Therefore it is totally ‘weird' to put into difficulty the entire population, official machinery, and other stakeholders just to convey the message seeking support in the elections. It is the right time that the concerned quarters should ponder over the matter and take a call to stop this unnecessary practice giving a nightmarish experience to many in the concerned cities and towns.
