PHASE 2 OF J&K DDC POLLS TODAY

JAMMU/SRINAGAR: The second phase of the District Development Council (DDC) elections will be held on Tuesday amid tight security arrangements, officials said.

It is the first major electoral exercise since the abrogation of Article 370 last year. The first phase of the polls were held on Saturday and 51.7% voting was recorded peacefully barring a couple of minor incidents.

J&K election commissioner KK Sharma said of the total 289 seats, 43 including 25 in Kashmir and 18 in Jammu division will go to polls in the second phase. He said 7.90 lakh voters are eligible for voting in the second phase and 2,142 polling stations have been set up across the Union territory.

The voting will take place from 7:00am to 2:00pm. He said 321 candidates are in the fray—196 in Kashmir and 125 in Jammu. “As many as 1,305 polling stations have been setup in Kashmir and 837 in Jammu for the second phase of polling,” Sharma added. He said all polling stations are sensitive in Kashmir and adequate security arrangements have been made to ensure no untoward incident is reported.

17 govt employees suspended for poll code violation

The Jammu and Kashmir administration has “temporarily” suspended 17 government employees, including seven teachers and three policemen, in Kishtwar district for allegedly violating the Model Code of Conduct ahead of the second phase of the District Development Council elections, officials said.

The attached employees include seven teachers, a forester, a policeman and two Special Police Officers. HTC