Voting picks up as day warms up in Kashmir (Third Lead)

Polling picked up in Srinagar and elsewhere in the Kashmir Valley Sunday as the day warmed up, with a weak winter sun struggling hard to break through the clouds.

After a dull start, voters lined up at many polling stations in Srinagar city, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, as well as Anantnag and Shopian districts in south Kashmir.

Long queues of voters were seen in Mehjoor Nagar, Bemina, Rawalpora, Baghat Barzalla, Zadibal, Khimmer and Chatterhama areas of Srinagar, where eight constituencies went to the polls Sunday.

Very few votes were, however, cast in the old city areas of Srinagar, the traditional stronghold of separatists.

Men and women voters massed at all the six constituencies of Pahalgam, Shangus, Doru, Kokernag, Bijbehara and Anantnag in Anantnag district.

The voter turnout was good in Wachi and Shopian constituencies of Shopian district too, officials said, although these two places are believed to harbour separatist sympathisers.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is contesting from Sonwar in Srinagar while PDP patron and former chief minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed is fighting from Anantnag.

Senior ministers Ali Muhammad Sagar of the National Conference (Khanyar), G.A. Mir of the Congress (Doru) and Peerzada Sayeed also of the Congress (Kokernag) are also in the fray besides the speaker of the outgoing state assembly, Mubarak Gul (Idgah).

The voter turnout in the first two hours was Hazratbal 7 percent, Zadibal 7.4 percent, Idgah 7.02 percent, Khanyar 8.13 percent, Habba Kadal 5.73 percent, Amira Kadal 7 percent, Sonwar 9.24 percent, Batmaloo 6.25 percent, Anantnag 8 percent, Doru 15 percent, Kokernag 11.48 percent, Shangus 15 percent, Pahalgam 23.71 percent, Bijbehara 12.84 percent, Wachi 8.43 percent and Shopian 10.68 percent.

In the two constituencies of Samba district in Jammu region, Vijaypur recorded 13.56 percent of polling in the first two hours and Samba 10.2 percent.

Sunday's polling ends at 4 p.m.