BY: ANI Reporter:
MUZAFFARABAD — The third and final phase of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) general elections will be held on August 10 in four constituencies of Bagh and Haveli, while polling in seven constituencies of Poonch and Sudhnoti has been officially postponed due to law and order concerns.
Polling will take place in LA-14, LA-15, LA-16 and LA-17, with around 460,000 eligible voters and 82 candidates contesting the four seats. A three-way contest is expected in Haveli (LA-17) between AJK Prime Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore, former Kashmir Council member Khawaja Tariq Saeed and PML-N candidate Mohsin Aziz.
The postponed constituencies are LA-18 to LA-24, covering five seats in Poonch and two in Sudhnoti, including Rawalakot, Hajira, Abbaspur, Ali Sojal, Palandri and Baloch.
The AJK Election Commission said the decision was taken following concerns over the law and order situation and requests from political personalities and candidates. The decision came after clashes between protesters and law enforcement personnel in Rawalakot on July 27.
Polling for the seven deferred constituencies is tentatively expected around August 20-21, subject to the security situation.
The AJK Legislative Assembly has 53 seats, including 45 general and eight reserved seats. PML-N has already secured 24 seats in the first two phases, crossing the 23-seat simple majority required to form a government.
