Naveed Iqbal

In two other incidents in the Valley, a Special Police Officer was killed and a Constable injured in Budgam of Central Kashmir, while three militants were killed in an encounter in Shopian, South Kashmir.

Parts of Srinagar observed a shutdown on account of the visit, with major markets remaining shut.

The coalition of J&K’s mainstream parties that contested the elections together — the National Conference, PDP, JK People’s Movement and CPM (with the People's Conference having exited the group) — has not got a single council in Jammu so far, with polls to three DDCs put off Saturday due to lack of quorum.

In the Jammu division, the BJP took control of the DDCs in Udhampur and Doda on Monday.

Launched six months after the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir was split in August 2019, Apni Party contested the DDC elections against the People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) constituents.

Burza said the move will instill a sense of confidence and security among tourists, which will pave the industry's way to recovery.

The decision comes as the government faces increasing criticism at home and internationally for imposing curbs on the Internet, widely seen as a core human right.

According to police data for the last three years, the number of law and order incidents in J&K plunged 75 per cent to 143 in 2020 compared with 584 in 2019.

The 31-member committee, headed by Rajya Sabha MP from Andhra Pradesh T G Venkatesh, will undertake a “study visit” of Srinagar and Gulmarg from January 21 to 23.

The recent DDC polls has seen the redrawing of political lines and the emergence of a new leadership — from a law student in North Kashmir to a dentist in the South, a school teacher in Jammu to the wife of a seasoned politician in Kashmir. The Indian Express in Jammu tell some of their stories.

The document, filed before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Shopian, on December 26, raises questions on how a single officer planned and executed the encounter without the knowledge of seniors.

By taking NC and PDP candidates, Apni Party has scuttled PAGD’s chances of taking control of the Shopian DDC. If the remaining three more Independent candidates also join the Apni Party, Bukhari would be able to stake claim to the Shopian DDC.

The PDP’s youth wing leader was arrested by the NIA on November 25, five days after he filed nomination papers, in connection with a terror case against suspended J&K police officer Devinder Singh.

Of 2,178 candidates in 280 territorial constituencies divided equally between Kashmir and Jammu, over a thousand candidates were Independent.

The eight-phase elections for the 280 territorial constituencies in 20 districts (10 each in Kashmir and Jammu) was also the first electoral exercise carried out in Jammu and Kashmir since the constitutional changes revoking the former state’s special status took shape.

Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) DDC Election Results 2020 Highlights: Seven political parties, including the NC and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), contested the polls in an alliance, under the banner of PAGD. This was the first election in the Union Territory after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 5 last year.

At Dara Shikoh park in Bijbehara, the party’s national spokesperson Syed Shahnawaz Hussain unfurled the tricolour and said, “Mehbooba Mufti used to say that there will be no one left to unfurl the flag, this is our response to her.”

Contesting on a J&K Apni Party ticket from Anantnag, Anees is the only candidate to have come under attack in the on-going elections to the District Development Councils (DDCs) in Jammu and Kashmir, the first electoral exercise after the scrapping of its special status.

Among the 13 in the fray are Shabir Ahmad Lone and Zahoor Ahmad Mir, both of whom were jailed under the stringent Public Safety Act (PSA) amidst the crackdown on political leadership following the scrapping of J&K's special status last year.

Election Commissioner K K Sharma told reporters said in Jammu that the fifth phase of elections for 37 seats – 17 in Kashmir division and 20 in Jammu division – was peaceful.

North and central Kashmir districts recorded a decent turnout and, with the Jammu region seeing 69.31 per cent voting, the overall turnout in the Union Territory was 50.08 per cent.

Waheed-ur-Rehman Para was arrested on November 25, five days after he filed his nomination, in connection with a terror case against suspended J&K police officer Devinder Singh.

In the first incident of violence during the ongoing polls, a Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party (JKAP) candidate was injured when militants shot at him while he was canvassing in Sagam constituency in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district.

The first of the eight-phase DDC polls on November 28 drew an unexpectedly high turnout of 51.7 per cent across J&K, including 40.6 per cent in the Valley.