The campaign for the first phase came to an end on Thursday.
Jammu / Srinagar:
Elections began today in Jammu and Kashmir for the District Development Council (DDC) elections, the first since the former state was reorganized as a Union Territory last year. Due to the cold weather, turnout was low as voting began at 7 a.m., officials said.
However, it is expected to increase with temperature during the day, authorities told PTI.
The campaign for the first phase came to an end on Thursday, and elaborate arrangements were made for the smooth conduct of the democratic exercise, especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, authorities said.
Up to 1,475 candidates are in the fray in the first of the eight phases, PTI reported. The election itself is being seen as a triangular contest between the Popular Alliance for the Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), the BJP, and the Apni Party raised by former Finance Minister Altaf Bukhari.
The PAGD, an amalgamation of several major political parties, including the National Conference and the People’s Democratic Party, seeks to restore Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, revoked by the Center last year. He has accused the Bukhari-led party of being Team B of the BJP, PTI reported.
There are 280 DDC posts in the Union Territory, 140 each in the Jammu and Kashmir regions, the officials said.
2,644 polling stations for 7,03,620 voters have been set up for phase I, officials said. Voting was to take place from 7 am to 2 pm.
Goodbye elections to 12,153 panchayat constituencies will also be held simultaneously, they said. Of these, 11,814 are in the Kashmir Valley and the rest in Jammu, according to PTI.
State Elections Commissioner KK Sharma has said all necessary COVID protocols have been in place to ensure the safety of the polls.
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