J&K Assembly Elections: Sikandar Malik, Jamaat-e-Islami-Backed Candidate, Campaigns Wearing GPS Tracker Amid Ban

Jamaat-e-Islami was banned by the Home Ministry under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in 2019 for alleged anti-national activities and links with terrorism.

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Jamaat-e-Islami-backed independent candidate Sikandar Malik campaigned wearing GPS tracking anklets on his feet. Sikandar says that after the 2024 parliamentary elections, they were confident that the election process in Jammu and Kashmir was being conducted in a free and fair manner, which motivated him to contest the Jammu and kashmir elections.

Jamaat-e-Islami, banned by the Home Ministry under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in 2019 for alleged anti-national activities and links with terrorism, decided to participate in the electoral process this time. However, the Home Ministry did not lift the ban, leading many of its members to contest the elections as independent candidates. Sikandar Malik, a former district president (Amir District), was arrested several times since 2019 by the National Investigation Agency under UAPA. He was kept in Court Boulevard Jail and Haryana and then District Jail Bandipora but was released on bail just two months before the elections, wearing a GPS tracker.

Sikandar Malik said, "I have been continuously arrested since 2019, first sent to Kot Bullard Jail, then to Haryana. Every day I had to report to the police station, and then, about two months before the Lok Sabha elections, I was kept in Bandipora Jail. I was told that a GPS tracker would be installed on me, and then I could move freely, so I accepted it."

Sikandar says that he has met people from all sections in Bandipora and urged them to vote for him for a better future for themselves and the region. He also expressed that the government should lift the ban on Jamaat-e-Islami, emphasizing that the party has never been against elections. He recalled that in 1987, elections were rigged, leading to their disillusionment, but after witnessing fair elections in the last parliamentary polls and the improved situation, he decided to contest.

He added, "All our responsible leaders have stated that we were disappointed after the 1987 elections, but the situation improved, especially after seeing the clear turnaround in the last elections. I am now contesting as an independent candidate."

Sikandar Malik is a candidate for the third phase of voting, and the outcome of his candidacy will be decided in this round.

Following the controversial assembly elections of 1987, Jamaat supported separatist movements and adopted a stance of election boycotts. In 2019, after the abrogation of Article 370, the government took strict action against Jamaat and other separatist organizations by banning them, arresting their leaders, and confiscating their properties.