Jammu and Kashmir's political future hinges on 49pc women voters in upcoming elections

As Jammu and Kashmir is gearing up for both parliamentary as well as assembly elections this year, the election commission recently said that women voters will comprise around 49 per cent of the union territory.

The women will have a huge responsibility of deciding the political future of Jammu and Kashmir in these upcoming elections. That's not all,the women of the region are also joining active politics in largenumbers.

According to the Election Commission of India, there are around 86.93 lakh (8.69 million) voters in Jammu and Kashmir, and among them 42.58 lakh (4.25 million) are female voters.

This isaround 49 per cent of the total voters, which makes them extremely important in deciding thepolitical course of the union territory.The large number of women voters have led political parties to woo them.

''Women will be at the forefront to decide who will govern the union territory. Women will look at the history of political parties and how these parties have worked to empower women. They also look at the educational opportunities created by the political parties. Women will also look at how the political partiesstood for women's rights. And also, the representation by the political parties. Women will take a 360 view of what has been done for them. The pink booths are token representations, '' said Ifra Jan, National Conference spokesperson.

She also added that ''It's not easy to join politics as your character is assassinated. The abilities of women are always questioned. Your dress and what you are saying is what gets judged than what you are doing for society. It's not easy, as it's been the case in all professions but yes, I am very thankful to my political party that stood by me like a rock. We are protected by the party and that's a silver lining here''.

Therepresentation of women in the assembly election in Jammu and Kashmir has been very low. In the 2014 assembly elections out of 831 candidates, only 28 were female contestants. Jammu and Kashmir has only had one female chief minister so far. Mehbooba Mufti, the former chief minister and leader ofPeoples Democratic Party (PDP) is seeing an increase inparticipation of women.

''It's not easy but if they join it's not difficult. Our party is led by a female, Mehbooba Mufti, and she came at a time when there were hardly any women in politics. It was a male-dominated area, and she became the first female chief minister of the state. She is an idol for me and the entire women population of the state. I look up to her for the work she has done, and she has been the lone voice of Kashmir. We have to encourage more and more women since there is a reservation, '' said Ahra Syed, PDP.

The women politicians in the Kashmir valley are happy that 49 per cent of the voters in the union territory are females and are hopeful that they will vote and choose their candidates carefully. Some of them are also inviting young women to join politics to change the political scenario as well as help women in general.

"In the earlier times, it was only men who were given the right to vote but with time things have changed and having so many female voters will bring a lot of change in the society. I am really happy that we women are coming out of our homes and going to polling booths choosing what is good for us and beneficial for us. Women are usually given less credit for the work but this time things will turn around and women will bring change. It used to be difficult to get into politics but with new generations women are getting many opportunities. Women need not to be scared of joining politics. A lot of young women want to come and join politics,'' said Bisma Meer from People's Conference.

Jammu and Kashmir will witnessparliamentary polls in the first five phases, while the Supreme Court has asked the Centreto hold assembly elections in the union territory before September 2024.