The incident-free and fair elections to put in place District Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (DGPC) in Jammu and Kashmir has added another feather in the hat of UT administration with the Sikh community expressing satisfaction and gratitude for the smooth conduct of this important exercise. The J&K administration has made elaborate arrangements to ensure smooth conduct of SGPC elections with security forces both central and the local police deployed in good numbers besides UT government employees taking the lead to help the Sikh community members to exercise their right of franchise in a hassle free manner. The management was precisely of the level of Lok Sabha polls with no room left for any kind of discrepancy or loophole. The administration has received applause from all sections of society especially the Sikh community members because the way the elections were held was exceptional with no untoward incident reported from anywhere. Surely this is another milestone in efficient working of J&K administration under the dynamic leadership of LG Manoj Sinha, who believes in transparency, accountability and corruption-free governance. It is pertinent to mention that the SGPC polls were smoothly conducted for 56 constituencies as in the remaining 134, out of total 190 constituencies, candidates were elected without any contest. The constituencies which witnessed elections include 40 in Jammu division and 16 in Kashmir division. A total of 152 candidates were in fray (112 in Jammu division and 40 in Kashmir division). Those declared uncontested, included 70 constituencies in Jammu division and 63 in Kashmir division. Polling was held through Ballot Boxes from 7 AM to 1 PM following which the counting of votes took place and the results were declared by the respective Returning Officers. This was for the first time that photo electoral rolls were prepared by the administration for DGPC elections. The civil administration had made elaborate arrangements while the police authorities had also made foolproof security arrangements for the smooth conduct of the elections in the districts. The polling exercise was a herculean task which the administration has accomplished with great ease showing the world that J&K has now become a robust and resourceful place with no dearth of administrative proficiency as not a single untoward incident was reported from anywhere in the UT making it amply clear that the government has done its job with phenomenal efficacy leaving no scope for any mistake whatsoever.
