Voting begins in postponed AJK constituencies LA-27, LA-28 amid tight security

WEB DESK: Polling commenced on Tuesday at 54 polling stations in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) constituencies LA-27 and LA-28 after voting was postponed due to bad weather on Sunday.

Voting will continue until 5pm, with authorities putting in place stringent security arrangements to ensure the peaceful conduct of the electoral process. Polling in the two constituencies was originally scheduled for August 2 but was deferred because of adverse weather conditions.

Separately, the AJK Election Commission announced that polling in constituency LA-24 Poonch and Sudhnoti-7 (Baloch) will be held on August 10, alongside voting in the remaining constituencies of the Poonch Division during the third phase of the elections.

The commission said the election schedule for LA-24 was revised after the electoral process was terminated following the death of independent candidate Zahid Yaseen.

The third phase of the AJK Legislative Assembly elections, covering constituencies in the Poonch Division, is scheduled for August 10.

In the first phase of the elections, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) won nine of the 13 seats in the Mirpur Division, while the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) secured four seats. In the second phase, based on unofficial and provisional results, the PML-N has again emerged as the leading party with 13 seats in the Muzaffarabad Division, while the PPP won five seats.