J-K polls LIVE: 26.72% turnout till 11:00 am in phase 1 of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections | News

The Congress in Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday expelled a district unit president and some other leaders from the basic membership of the party for going against the spirit of its alliance with the National Conference (NC) and contesting as Independents in the assembly polls. The party expelled Srinagar district president Imtiyaz Ahmad Khan and two others from the basic membership of the party. 

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday urged people in Jammu and Kashmir to vote for the INDIA bloc, saying every such vote will ensure the return of their rights and bring employment. “My brothers and sisters of Jammu and Kashmir, today the first phase of voting is being held. For the first time in the history of the country, a state’s statehood has been taken away and it has been made a union territory – this is a violation of all your constitutional rights, an insult to Jammu and Kashmir,” Gandhi said in a post in X.

Data from the Election Commission showed that of the seven districts voting in the first phase, the highest voter turnout was recorded in Kishtwar at 32.69 per cent. Doda followed next at 32.20 per cent and Ramban recorded 31.25 per cent voter turnout till 11 am. Shopian, Kulgam and Anantnag logged around 25 per cent polling outcomes while Pulwama saw the lowest turnout at 20.37 per cent. Read here for more details.

BJP candidate from Kishtwar, Shagun Parihar, on Wednesday cast her vote here as she expressed confidence in securing the seat in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections which are being held after a gap of a decade. Shagun (29), whose father Ajit Parihar and uncle Anil Parihar were shot dead by terrorists in November 2018, said she is confident that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will “achieve a resounding victory in these elections and form a government in Jammu and Kashmir”. “Terrorism remains one of the biggest issues in this election, as it has been in Jammu and Kashmir for years. The Narendra Modi-led government has made significant strides in countering terrorism, which is a personal concern for me as a victim,” she said.

The first phase of voting in Jammu and Kashmir saw a cumulative voter turnout of 26.72 per cent as of 11:00 am on Wednesday, as per the Election Commission of India.

 

Lok Sabha member Sheikh Abdul Rashid on Wednesday hit out at Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha’s call for stricter laws to prevent organisations like Jamaat-e-Islami from participating in elections. Rashid said unlike the BJP which has “spilt Muslim blood” and divided India along communal lines to further its agenda, the Jamaat-e-Islami was just seeking a resolution of political issues in Jammu and Kashmir.

“If the (Lieutenant) Governor had his way, he would throw all of Kashmir into the Jhelum River. What kind of democracy is this? What has Jamaat-e-Islami done? What is their fault? This is an organisation that has done a lot of work in the social, moral, and educational sectors in Kashmir,” Rashid said.

People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate from Pulwama Assembly constituency Waheed Para said that people want to change and this election process is to “reclaim whatever we have lost.” “Pulwama has been stigmatized. This is an election for us to reclaim the image of Pulwama, the youth of Pulwama, and the people of Pulwama and we are optimistic. We want people to come out in this election and vote for peace, progress, development and dignity of J & K. Voting is an act of self-preservance for all of us. People have lost so much in the last 6-7 years. So people want to change and this voting is to reclaim whatever we have lost,” Waheed Para said.

National Conference (NC) vice president Omar Abdullah on Wednesday expressed hope that voters in Jammu and Kashmir would avoid “fragmentation of their votes”, warning that many independent candidates in the Valley were contesting with the aim to divide the ballot. “People will have to keep it (a huge number of independent candidates contesting) in mind, because most of these candidates are in Kashmir. It seems it is an attempt to fragment votes and divide people. I hope the voters will remain cautious of these and avoid fragmentation of their votes in this election,” Abdullah said.

A voter turnout of 11.11 per cent was registered in the first two hours of voting in the first phase of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls, an official said on Wednesday. The maximum voting percentage among the 16 assembly segments in the Kashmir valley was recorded in Shopian at 13 per cent. It was followed by Pahalgam at 12.56 per cent, Kokernag (ST) at 12 per cent and Srigufwara-Bijbehara at 11.60 per cent.

The lowest — 6 per cent — was recorded in Anantnag, they said.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Wednesday appealed to the people of Jammu and Kashmir to vote in record numbers. “J&K Assembly elections commence today. I call upon all the voters whose assembly constituencies are voting in the first phase today to turn out in record numbers & exercise their democratic rights. I especially urge youth, women and first-time voters to vote in large numbers,” Sinha said in a post on X.

Voting started at 7 am across the 24 constituencies under a multi-layer security provided by Central Armed Paramilitary Forces (CAPF), Jammu and Kashmir Armed Police, and J-K Police. The process will conclude at 6 pm, officials said. Read here for more details.

Former Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president Vikar Rasool Wani was among the early voters to cast their ballot at a polling station here in Jammu and Kashmir’s Ramban district on Wednesday. Wani, a former minister who won the Banihal constituency seat in the 2008 and 2014 elections, expressed confidence in securing the seat for a third consecutive term. He faces competition from six other candidates, including National Conference’s Sajjad Shaheen, PDP’s Imtiyaz Shan, and BJP’s Mohd Saleem Bhat.

 

Voting began today in Jammu and Kashmir’s Chenab valley, having over 714,000 eligible voters, to decide the fate of 64 candidates in the first phase of the assembly elections being held after a decade. Polling started at 7 am at all 1,328 polling stations set up across eight assembly seats of Chenab valley districts of Doda, Kishtwar, and Ramban amid heavy security, as the region has witnessed a spurt in terror activities over the past three months, leaving six army personnel and four terrorists dead. Besides Chenab valley, the first phase of assembly elections also covered four districts of south Kashmir’s Anantnag, Pulwama, Kulgam, and Shopian, which have 16 assembly constituencies.

In a post on X, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge appealed to people in Jammu and Kashmir to participate in “crucial election and be the catalysts for change” as the first phase of polling began in the region. “As the first phase of voting in 24 Assembly constituencies commences, we urge everyone to exercise their democratic right and vote in large numbers. Every single vote holds the power to shape the future and bring about an era of peace, stability, justice, progress, and economic empowerment. We appeal to all, especially first-time voters, to participate in this crucial election and be the catalysts for change,” Kharge said in the post.