Mirpur (Web Desk): The first phase of polling for the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Legislative Assembly elections concluded on Monday across 13 constituencies in Mirpur Division after authorities extended voting by an additional hour.
Polling, originally scheduled to end at 5pm, continued until 6pm before ballot counting officially got underway.
A total of 296 candidates contested the first phase, including nominees from the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP), as well as independent candidates, across the districts of Mirpur, Kotli and Bhimber.
According to election authorities, 1,401,439 registered voters were eligible to participate in the first phase. The voter list included 725,118 male voters and 675,628 female voters.
To facilitate the electoral process, the AJK Election Commission established 2,454 polling stations throughout Mirpur Division. Of these, 597 were set up in the four constituencies of Mirpur district, 1,107 in Kotli's six constituencies, and 608 in Bhimber's three constituencies.
Officials had deployed comprehensive security arrangements across the region to ensure that voting remained peaceful and orderly.
AJK Chief Election Commissioner Justice (retd) Ghulam Mustafa Mughal cautioned that any attempt to disrupt the electoral process would be met with strict legal action.
Separately, AJK Chief Secretary Khushhal Khan said the people of Azad Kashmir had rejected forces seeking to create unrest and had demonstrated confidence in democracy.
He said all state institutions were fully prepared to ensure peaceful polling and warned that anyone attempting to interfere with the election process or disturb law and order would face legal consequences.
Despite largely peaceful polling, one person was killed and three others sustained injuries after gunfire erupted at a polling station in LA-9 Kotli-II Nakyal, according to police.
Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Kamran Ali confirmed the death, while police suspended voting at the affected polling station following the incident.
PPP candidate Javed Budhanvi identified the deceased as party worker Mukhtar Younis and said the body had been shifted to the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital.
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari expressed sorrow over the killing and offered condolences to the bereaved family. In a statement, he alleged that supporters of PML-N candidate Umair Niazi opened fire, resulting in the death of the PPP worker.
Prime Minister's Adviser on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah said the election process across AJK remained largely peaceful, with only one major untoward incident reported during polling.
He acknowledged that a few minor incidents had occurred but said no other serious disruptions were reported besides the firing incident. He also described the overall polling arrangements as satisfactory.
Referring to the intense heat experienced during the day, Sanaullah said extending polling hours had helped make it easier for voters to cast their ballots.
PPP Vice President Senator Sherry Rehman accused the PML-N of attempting to cast doubt on the credibility of the AJK elections because it feared defeat. She said the people of Kashmir were politically mature and fully capable of deciding their own future, adding that the PPP shared a longstanding relationship with the Kashmiri people.
She questioned why the PML-N objected if voters chose to support the PPP and maintained that the public mandate could not be taken away through what she described as unfair tactics. Rehman said the PPP would ultimately emerge victorious regardless of the methods employed by its opponents.
PPP Information Secretary Shazia Marri said the people of Kashmir would decide the outcome through the ballot box. She described the PPP's arrow symbol as a sign of hope for the people of Mirpur and claimed rival political camps had fallen silent ahead of the vote.
In a separate video message alongside his sister Asifa Bhutto-Zardari, PPP Chairman Bilawal appealed to voters to participate in the election if they wanted the future of Kashmir to be determined by the people of Kashmir themselves. He urged supporters to stamp the PPP's arrow symbol and elect the party's candidates.
Meanwhile, senior PPP leader Nadeem Afzal Chan voiced concerns over what he described as federal interference and the alleged use of official resources during the election campaign.
He called for transparent, free and impartial elections and urged the federal government and state machinery to stay away from influencing the electoral process.
Meanwhile, workers belonging to two rival political parties clashed at the Darbar Baba Shadi Shaheed polling station in LA-6 Bhimber.
PML-N candidate Abdul Razzaq Chaudhry alleged that workers from the opposing party initiated the confrontation and further claimed that IPP supporters created disorder at Polling Station No. 95. He said polling was suspended at both affected polling stations following the incidents.
The District Returning Officer (DRO) confirmed that a clash had taken place at the Darbar Baba Shadi Shaheed polling station.
According to the DRO, unidentified individuals snatched a ballot box containing 232 votes and set it ablaze. He said the returning officer and security personnel were present at the scene and that legal proceedings would be initiated against those responsible.
The DRO added that a decision regarding re-polling at the affected polling station would be announced later. He said the situation at all remaining polling stations across the constituency remained peaceful.
The election official further confirmed receiving a complaint from former prime minister Anwarul Haq regarding LA-7. He said he personally visited the polling stations mentioned in the complaint and found that Anwarul Haq's polling agents were present there.