Jammu and Kashmir Kicks Off First Phase of Assembly Elections Amid Tight Security

The first phase of Jammu and Kashmir's Assembly elections commenced on Wednesday. Voters in 24 constituencies, including 16 in Kashmir and 8 in Jammu, are casting their ballots. A total of 873 candidates are in the fray across 90 constituencies. Vote counting will take place on October 8.

Polling for the first phase of the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections began on Wednesday amid tight security arrangements.

The voting process started at 7 am and will conclude at 6 pm, as per the Election Commission of India. In this phase, 24 Assembly constituencies are going to the polls—16 in the Kashmir region and 8 in the Jammu region. A total of 486 candidates filed their nomination papers by the last date, September 12. Upon scrutiny, 449 nominations were deemed valid. Following the withdrawal of 34 candidates, 415 now remain in the electoral contest for phase 3.

In total, 873 candidates are participating in the Assembly Elections for 90 assembly constituencies, including 219 candidates for 24 seats in the first phase, 239 candidates for 26 seats in the second phase, and 415 candidates for 40 seats in the final phase, according to official figures. The second and third phases of polling are scheduled for September 25 and October 1, respectively. Counting of votes is set for October 8, marking the first elections in the region since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.

The Congress and National Conference are contesting the elections in alliance, while other parties like the PDP, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and People's Conference are also in the fray for the 90 Assembly seats.

(With inputs from agencies.)