Low voter turn out in Kashmir in final phase of municipal polls

Yet again, Kashmir valley witnessed an abysmally low voter turnout of 4.2 per cent in the fourth and final phase of the municipal polls in Jammu and Kashmir.

Voting in the Ladakh region was completed in the first phase held on October 8. Polling in Jammu region was completed in the third phase on October 13.  

The authorities will now be focussing on the Panchayat elections in November for which stricter security arrangements are being planned, especially in Kashmir valley.

On Tuesday, polling was held in only 36 of the 132 wards in eight municipal bodies in six districts in Kashmir after 52 candidates were elected unopposed and no candidate filed nomination in 44 other wards. As a result, only the wards from two municipal bodies of Srinagar and Ganderbal saw voting, in which 150 candidates were in the fray—38 in Ganderbal and 112 in Srinagar. No polling was witnessed in rest of the six municipal bodies in south Kashmir's Pulwama

and Anantnag districts.

On Tuesday, a meagre four per cent voters cast their vote in Srinagar district and 11.3 per cent in Ganderbal district, according to the Chief Electoral Office in Srinagar.

Normal life was affected in areas where polling was held in Kashmir due to a strike call given by the separatist Joint Resistance Forum of Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik.

Schools, colleges and shops remained closed in many parts of Srinagar and Ganderbal.

Transport services were badly hit and only private vehicles were plying. The government had announced a holiday on Tuesday in areas which went to polls. Internet was also suspended in many areas as a precautionary security measure.

The municipal polls in the state were last held in 2005. Due to the poor security situation, the polls couldn't be held in 2011.