Voters have begun casting their ballots in regional elections in Indian-administered Kashmir.
Kashmiris lined up outside polling stations on Wednesday morning to vote in a local government election for the first time since the disputed territory lost its semi-autonomous status in 2019.
Nine million registered voters will choose members of the Himalayan region’s 90-seat legislature.
After Wednesday’s first voting phase, the second and third rounds will be held on September 25 and October 1. Votes will be counted on October 8, with results expected the same day.
Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party-led (BJP) government has said that getting rid of the region’s special status restored normalcy in the area and helped its development.
The prime minister has urged Kashmiris to turn out to vote “in large numbers” to “strengthen the festival of democracy”.
In the past, pro-independence armed groups have targeted elections in Kashmir, and voter turnout has been weak. The territory, however, recorded its highest turnout in 35 years in national elections held in April and May, with a 58.46 percent participation rate.
Kashmir has been at the center of a dispute with neighboring Pakistan since 1947. India and Pakistan both claim the region in full but rule it in part, after having fought two of their three wars over the area.
