Pakistan-administered Kashmir votes in reduced third phase amid unrest

Voting is under way in the third and final phase of Pakistan-administered Kashmir's Legislative Assembly elections, but the poll has been reduced after unrest and postponements in seven constituencies. In the Poonch division of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, only four of the 11 constituencies originally due to vote are taking part on Monday. More than 800 polling booths opened at 8am local time and are due to close in the late afternoon, with about 460,000 people registered to vote.

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The postponed constituencies are five in Poonch district and two in Sudhnoti district, where officials said a new polling date will be announced in the coming days. The delay followed weeks of protests by the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee, a local pressure group that has demanded the abolition of 12 reserved seats in the regional legislature for displaced Kashmiris living elsewhere in Pakistan. Violence during those protests killed more than 50 people, according to residents and rights groups, while the government has said at least seven police and paramilitary personnel were killed.

Faisal Mumtaz Rathore, the prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and a member of the Pakistan People's Party, is defending his seat in Haveli. In Bagh, two former prime ministers are contesting the vote, with Sardar Tanveer Ilyas of the Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party facing Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan of the Muslim Conference. The election is being held under tight security after the authorities banned the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee in June under anti-terrorism laws.

The reduced poll matters because it comes at the end of a three-phase election for the 53-member assembly, and because the unrest has already altered the shape of the contest. The first phase in the Mirpur division took place on 27 July, when the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz won nine of 13 seats. The second phase in the Muzaffarabad division and 12 refugee constituencies across Pakistan was held on 2 August, with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz winning 15 seats.

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Monday's vote will help determine the final balance of power in the assembly, but the postponements mean the process is not being completed everywhere at the same time. The protests have also drawn attention to the disputed question of reserved seats for displaced Kashmiris, which has become central to the current unrest. The authorities have restricted international media access in the region, telling reporters to leave and seek clearance before returning.

That has limited independent reporting from the area and left the scale of the violence and the full impact of the boycott dispute less clear. What happens next depends on when officials set a new date for the seven postponed constituencies and whether the boycott call affects turnout in the seats still voting. The final result of the assembly election will also be shaped by the outcome in Haveli and Bagh, where senior political figures are competing directly.

For now, the main unresolved questions are the turnout in the reduced third phase, the timing of the delayed vote, and whether the unrest eases after polling ends.

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