J-K civic body poll results to be declared today

The counting of votes for 52 civic bodies will be held across the state on Saturday and the results will be also declared on the same day.

The polls were held in four phases amid tight security arrangements covering 79 municipal bodies with an electorate of about 17 lakhs. A total of 3372 nominations were filed for 1145 wards with poll dates of October 8, 10, 13 and 16.

Out of 79 civic bodies, no voting was held in 27 civic bodies in the Valley either because there was no candidate or only one candidate had filed nominations for a particular ward.

The maximum voter turnout was recorded in the first phase in Jammu and Kashmir (56.7 per cent), while least voter turnout was registered during the fourth phase (4.2 per cent).

The fight is between the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as Jammu and Kashmir's two major parties- National Conference (NC) and the People's Democratic Alliance (PDP)- have boycotted the elections over lack of clarity in the Centre's stand on Articles 35A.

Article 35A disallows people from residing in Jammu and Kashmir, buying or owning immovable property in the state, settling permanently, or getting state government jobs.