Now Reading: PML-N leads PoK polls, third phase partly postponed
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PML-N leads PoK polls, third phase partly postponed
Voting for seven of the 11 seats in the third phase of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir's legislative assembly elections has been postponed indefinitely, the region's Election Commission said on Friday, citing law and order…
The Story in Brief
Voting for seven of the 11 seats in the third phase of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir's legislative assembly elections has been postponed indefinitely, the region's Election Commission said on Friday, citing law and order concerns. The remaining four seats in Bagh and Haveli will vote on August 10 as scheduled.
The ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has won 24 of the 34 seats decided in the first two phases, putting it on course to form the next government. Turnout exceeded 50 per cent despite weeks of violent protests and a boycott call by the banned Joint Awami Action Committee. One person was killed on the first polling day, the Pakistan Peoples Party said. India has called the exercise a 'complete farce'.
The Indian Opinion
Both Islamabad and New Delhi are spinning this election. Pakistan calls it a democratic exercise; India dismisses it as a farce. The truth is messier. Voters turned out despite a boycott, but a banned group's protests and the postponement of seven seats show the process is fragile. The real test will be the final death toll from the unrest, the banned Joint Awami Action Committee claims over 400 killed, while the government says it is in the double digits. That gap will not close with more propaganda.
Sources (3): thehindu.com, thehindu.com (2), thehindu.com (3)
This story was synthesised by AI from the 3 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 3 sources.
