Enthusiastic voters reached polling stations on Thursday in Kathua, Reasi and Udhampur districts of Udhampur Lok Sabha seat while muted voting was reported in Srinagar Lok Sabha seat amid a protest shutdown.
Here are the live updates:
5 PM: 43.3 per cent polling in Udhampur, Srinagar LS seats till 5 pm
Udhampur Lok Sabha constituency recorded 64.78 percent polling, with Udhampur district registering the highest of 72.2 percent polling till 5 pm, he said.
Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency recorded 14.93 per cent polling, with highest 21 per cent polling recorded in Budgam and lowest 7 percent in Srinagar district till 5 pm.
4 PM: Intense clashes break out in Narullahpora village of central Kashmir’s Budgam district. Reports said that youth pelted stones on the police and paramilitary forces deployed for election duty in the village. The forces responded by firing teargas shells.
- 3 PM: 38.5 per cent voting recorded in Udhampur and Srinagar Lok Sabha seats till 3pm
- 58 per cent in Udhampur
- 12 per cent in Srinagar
Woman among three injured after security forces fire pellets to chase away stone-throwing protesters in Hafroo village of Chadoora
- 1 PM: 29.6 per cent voting recorded in Srinagar and Udhampur Lok Sabha seats
- Udhampur records 44.90 per cent; Srinagar records 11.4 per cent voting
- Kathua records highest 49,7 per cent polling, Srinagar records lowest 4. 8 per cent
- 11 am: Overall voting percentage in the state 17.8
- Five per cent voting in Srinagar seat
- 26.28 per cent voting in Udhampur
- 9AM: 5731 votes were polled out of nearly 13 lakh till 9 am in Srinagar district
- 9AM: 9 per cent polling recorded in Doda district
- 9 AM: Bani 7.44 per cent; Basholi 7.1 per cent; Kathua 22 per cent; Billawar 12.31 per cent; Hiranagar 12 per cent
- Small queues of voters were seen in Kathua, Reasi and Udhampur districts right from the beginning of the poll process for the Udhampur Lok Sabha seat.
Voter enthusiasm was visible in both urban and rural voting segmentsof Udhampur constituency that includes Kathua, Reasi, Udhampur, Doda, Kishtwarand Ramban districts.
In Srinagar Lok Sabha seat where extra ordinary security arrangementshave been made to secure polling stations and ensure safe passage to voters,voters came out in ones and twos in rural voting segments of Ganderbal, Badgamand Srinagar districts.
Polling stations in Srinagar city that has eight voting segments,however, wore a deserted look in the morning as hardly any voter came out.
Voters came out in small numbers in rural belts of Kangan, Ganderbal,Chrar-e-Sharief, Khansahib, Beerwah and Badgam voting segments of Srinagar LokSabha seat.
Poll officials said voting is expected to pick up as the day warnsup.
The officials face multiple challenges in Srinagar Lok Sabha seat.
Securing polling stations, providing safe passage to voters,preventing militants from disrupting the poll process and ensuring that no lawand order situation builds up during the day are the main challenges faced inthis constituency.
Separatists have called for a boycott of the election process to highlight the Kashmir issue. (With inputs from agencies)