Polling for the 7th phase of Panchayat elections in Jammu and Kashmir underway

Polling for the seventh phase of Panchayat elections in Jammu and Kashmir is going on smoothly. Voting, which began at 8 AM, will conclude at 2 Pm. 14 blocks in 6 districts of Jammu region and 16 blocks in 9 districts of Kashmir Valley are going to polls in this phase. 

Voting is taking place on around 340 Sarpanch and nearly 1,800 Panch seats, for which over 5,500 candidates are in the fray. 85 Sarpanch and 912 Panch have already been elected unopposed.

In Jammu division, about 58 per cent polling was recorded in the border district of Poonch by 11 AM, while over 48 per cent voting was reported in Samba district.

In Kashmir Division, nearly 12 per cent votes were polled till 10 am in the frontier district of Kupwara. The nine-phase polling in the state is being held on non-party basis.