Unlike the 2002 polls, there will be no foreign election observers this time to monitor the seven-phased Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir. The Government says it has not received any foreign request for observing the polls. “I am not aware of the presence of any foreign observer,” Chief Electoral Officer B R Sharma told The Indian Express. “No diplomat or Ambassador has so far sought permission to supervise the upcoming elections in the state.”

In 2002, the Election Commission had invited many foreign observers to monitor polls in the state. The observers who included a team from the European Union and some parliamentarians were issued passes by the EC to visit polling stations of their choice. The state Government had similarly made adequate transport and security arrangements for them to monitor the voting process. The step was aimed at restoring the people’s confidence in the electoral process.