MUZAFFARABAD – Voting commenced at 8am on Saturday at 23 polling stations across two constituencies in Azad Jammu and Kashmir’s Bagh district, where the Election Commission had withheld results after polling could not be conducted during the earlier phase of the election.
Polling is being held in LA-15 (Bagh Central) and LA-16 (Eastern Bagh) and is scheduled to continue until 5pm. The repolling is part of the third phase of the AJK elections, which has been conducted in stages amid unrest and law-and-order concerns in parts of the region.
Why Results Were Withheld
The result of LA-15 was withheld because voting could not be conducted at nine polling stations. In the third phase of polling held earlier this week, PPP candidate Sardar Ziaul Qamar had secured 16,637 votes, while PML-N’s Mushtaq Ahmed Minhas stood second with 15,015 votes. Jamaat-i-Islami’s retired Brig Dr Muhammad Khan received 12,259 votes.
The Election Commission also withheld the result of LA-16 after polling was disrupted at 14 stations with a combined voter count of 7,238. At the remaining polling stations, PML-N’s Sardar Mir Akbar was leading with 19,515 votes, holding a margin of 3,225 votes over PPP candidate Sardar Qamaruz Zaman.
Allegations and Security Measures
All five candidates contesting the two constituencies had levelled allegations of widespread rigging against their rivals. AJK Chief Election Commissioner retired Justice Ghulam Mustafa Mughal said adequate security arrangements had been made to ensure voters could cast their ballots without fear.
He said sufficient police and other law-enforcement personnel had been deployed at the polling stations.
Broader Context of the Third Phase
The third phase was originally planned for all 11 constituencies of Poonch Division. However, the Election Commission restricted polling to Bagh and Haveli districts because of security concerns.
In the earlier polling, the commission declared the result of LA-14 (Bagh-I), also known as Dhirkot, where Jammu Kashmir Awami Dast-o-Bazu Party candidate Sajid Iqbal Abbasi won by a wide margin with 40,522 votes.
The LA-17 (Haveli) constituency, where AJK Prime Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore contested, has also remained disputed. The result was challenged by PML-N candidate Engr Mohsin Aziz, who objected to the declaration of Mr Rathore as the winner. The AJK chief election commissioner reserved his decision on the petition after hearing arguments from both sides on Thursday.
