Most of the places in these two border districts have poor road connectivity, skeletal medicare services, abandoned schools, erratic power and water supply, besides ever increasing unemployment. However, on poll eve, all these issues have taken a back seat. The people are divided between Gujjar and non-Gujjar.

With an electorate of over 6.30 lakh, both districts have seven assembly constituencies — Poonch Haveli, Surankote and Mendhar (all Poonch district) and Rajouri, Darhal, Kalaote and Nowshera (all Rajouri district). Except for the Hindu-dominated assembly constituencies of Kalakote and Nowshera in Rajouri district, the other five constituencies in both districts are predominantly Muslim. While 40 to 42 per cent of the total electorate in both districts are Gujjars, Hindus form 20 per cent and the rest are non-Gujjar Muslims including Kashmiris.

The divide between Gujjars and non-Gujjars is an old one. But the present tension has its roots in the Scheduled Tribe status granted to the former by the Centre in 1991. Non-Gujjars, Muslims and Hindus, are demanding the same.

Unwilling to share the benefits of the ST status, the Gujjars oppose the demand. Taking advantage of this feeling of discrimination among non-Gujjars, a Hindu candidate had for the first time got elected from the predominantly Gujjar Darhal constituency in 2002.

Now, with the Gujjars strategically avoiding pitting two strong contestants from the community in any constituency except for Darhal, the wedge between them and non-Gujjars has widened. Non-Gujjars see in it a game-plan by the former to get these constituencies reserved for them.

Political analysts attribute this polarisation between Gujjars and non-Gujjars to the distrust between the communities. Gujjars apprehend that if non-Gujjars are elected, they would press for ST status to Pahari-speaking people as well. The latter feel that if Gujjars are elected, they will try to get these constituencies reserved for them as part of their plan to get political reservation for the community.

Amarnath: Issue, non-issue

* It is early days yet. Udhampur, Reasi, Kathua and Jammu districts are going to polls during the 4th, 5th and 7th phases. But the Amarnath issue, which not long ago looked like it would create a communal divide in the region, is nowhere in sight.

All the prominent faces of the Shri Amarnath Sangharsh Samiti like Leela Karan Sharma, Brig Suchet Singh, Dr Jatinder Singh or S Narender Singh, have taken a back seat. None of them have so far jumped into the electoral fray. “We are neither endorsing nor opposing the candidature of anybody,” says a prominent leader of the Sangharsh Samiti.

The space temporarily occupied by the Samiti in many parts of the Jammu region till over a month ago has been taken over by political parties. Parties like the People’s Democratic Party, whose leaders dared not to even come out of their houses during the pro-Amarnath agitation, are now openly taking out rallies and holding meetings.