JAMMU AND KASHMIR ASSEMBLY ELECTION 2008
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10 per cent polling J-K till noon, no violence
Published on Mon, Nov 17, 2008 at 08:30, Updated on Mon, Nov 17, 2008 at 14:15 in 
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Srinagar: Around 10 per cent of six lakh voters exercised their franchise in the first phase of assembly elections in 10 constituencies of Jammu and Kashmir till noon on Monday.
Polling is going on smoothly in all the ten constituencies: four in Ladakh and three each in Bandipora and Poonch districts.
The highest voter turnout was in Kargil constituency, where around 17 per cent of registered voters cast their ballot. Voter turnout in Nobra and Leh constituencies of Leh district was 8.8 and 6.46 per cent. Votes had boycotted elections in Nobra and Leh in the assembly polls of 2002.
Mendhar, Surankote and Poonch-Haveli constituencies in the border district of Poonch registered 13, 12 and 8 per cent voting respectively, said a government spokesman.
Gurez, Bandipora and Sonawari constituencies in newly carved out Bandipora district, on the other hand, registered 10, 7 and 7 per cent polling respectively.
Polling for the first phase began amid concerns that adverse weather could affect polling in some areas.
Braving the chilly conditions, voters in small numbers came out early morning in the Bandipora and Sonawari constituencies of the valley to elect their representatives to the new 87-member assembly.
The constituencies are spread over the Muslim-dominated Kashmir Valley, the Hindu-majority Jammu region and the mainly Buddhist Ladakh.
Voting started at 8000 Hrs IST at all 1,038 polling stations in Bandipora, Poonch, Leh and Kargil amid tight security in view of possible attempts by terrorists to disrupt the polls.
The major concern for the security apparatus though remains the poll boycott protests being planned by the separatists. The All Parties Hurriyat Conference has called for a long march to Bandipura. A day before the elections, top Hurriayat leaders were put under house arrest and several Hurriyar supporters detained.
The first phase of polling will perhaps be an indicator of how people respond to the general elections after the Amarnath row.
Of the 1038 polling stations, more than half of them have been described as 'hyper sensitive' while the rest have been placed under 'sensitive' category.
Over six lakh electorate will cast their franchise to choose 10 representatives in the most-keenly fought assembly elections in the state's chequered political history.
Their counterparts in 77 assembly constituencies will cast their ballot in six phases on November 23, 30 and December 7, 13, 17 and 24.
Former Deputy Speaker of the Assembly and National Conference leader Mohammad Akbar Lone, former Ministers in the PDP-Congress coalition government — Usman Majid and Nawang Rigzin Jora, sitting Lok Sabha member Thupstan Chhewang and member of the state Legislative Council and PDP leader Nizamuddin Bhat are among the 102 candidates whose electoral fortunes will be decided on Monday.
(With inputs from CNN-IBN, PTI and IANS)
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