Sainik School Manasbal alumni elect first president after 45 years

Mohammed Yousuf Wani secures 344 votes as 765 alumni cast valid ballots in the association’s first election

Srinagar: Alumni of J&K Sainik School, Manasbal, have elected Mohammed Yousuf Wani, a member of the school’s first batch, as the first president of the JKSSM Alumni Association, 45 years after the institution admitted its inaugural batch.

Wani was declared elected on Sept. 3 after securing 344 of 765 valid votes.

Dr Nawab Nasir Aman received 226 votes, followed by Mohammed Ijaz Ul Haq Kanth with 112, Junaid Ahmad Wani with 42 and Farooq Zaidi with 41 votes.

The association said 1,034 alumni across India and abroad were registered on the electoral roll, while 765 valid ballots were cast, resulting in a 74% turnout.

The election was overseen by an independent four-member Election Commission chaired by Hamid Hajni.

Its members included Dr G. R. Beigh, head of the Department of Electronics and Communications Engineering at the National Institute of Technology; Dr Bashir Ahmad, IRS, inspector general of registrations; and chartered accountant Ovais Shah.

The commission said it published the electoral roll, invited objections, scrutinised five nominations and held two public debates online before the poll.

The association said the electronic voting process was designed to allow ballots to be independently checked.

Each voter received a confidential one-time Voter ID, while the ballot record was held view-only by five custodians.

A cryptographic fingerprint of the record was generated every 10 minutes during the two-day polling period and sent to the custodians.

The count was conducted on a recorded call in the presence of all four commission members and followed by two independent recounts.

Of 986 ballots received, 765 were declared valid.

The commission rejected 221 ballots, including 142 repeat submissions using already-used Voter IDs and 79 ballots carrying IDs not included on the electoral roll.

The association said the rejected ballots and their reasons, along with the full count sheet and valid ballots by ID, were published on its website.

Wani took the oath online on Sept. 5 in the presence of the school’s principal and alumni joining from across India and a dozen countries.

He has committed to forming an independent Constitution Drafting Committee, with applications open to all members, before putting the proposed constitution to a vote by the association.

A formal gathering at the school is planned for Sept. 14, the anniversary of the first batch’s admission.

The association said it has around 2,800 alumni, including serving and retired armed forces officers, civil servants, doctors, engineers, academics and entrepreneurs.

Its stated aims include supporting alumni facing hardship, providing mentoring and scholarships to students and supporting the school.

J&K Sainik School, Manasbal, was established on the banks of Manasbal Lake in Ganderbal district and admitted its first batch on Sept. 14, 1981.

The school says it has prepared students from across Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh for the National Defence Academy, public service and professional careers.