Key Takeaways
- Polling concluded on Sunday for the second phase of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Legislative Assembly elections.
- Voting in LA-27 Muzaffarabad was postponed due to heavy rainfall and landslides, rescheduled for August 4.
- The Pakistan Peoples Party accused PML-N of electoral irregularities and violence during the second phase.
Polling concluded on Sunday for the second phase of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Legislative Assembly elections in eight constituencies of the Muzaffarabad Division and all 12 refugee seats, with vote counting now under way.
Under the Election Commission’s schedule, polling was held from 8am to 5pm. However, polling hours were extended until 6pm in the eight Muzaffarabad constituencies and continued until 5pm for the refugee seats at stations set up across Islamabad, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, and Balochistan.
The Election Commission postponed polling in LA-27 Muzaffarabad due to heavy rainfall and landslides that blocked several roads. The constituency’s voting has been rescheduled for August 4.
Counting of votes began immediately after polling ended, with voters already present inside polling stations allowed to cast their ballots.
The AJK elections are being held in three phases: the first phase was conducted in the Mirpur Division on July 27, and polling in the Poonch Division is scheduled for August 10.
More than 300 candidates contested the eight Muzaffarabad Division seats and 12 refugee constituencies. The 12 refugee constituencies have 438,834 registered voters, including 247,776 men and 191,054 women.
According to the Election Commission, 895,066 registered voters were eligible to vote in the Muzaffarabad Division, with 427,400 men and 382,167 women.
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) accused the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) of electoral irregularities, violence, and rigging during the second phase of polling. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari alleged that PML-N was attempting to ‘steal the public mandate’.
The PPP demanded an investigation into the alleged attack on AJK PPP President and LA-31 candidate Chaudhry Latif Akbar, while party worker Mushtaq Shah was killed in the same constituency. The party submitted 25 complaints relating to 11 constituencies but had yet to receive a response.
The PML-N rejected the allegations as baseless in its written reply to the Election Commission.
Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs Amir Muqam said law enforcement agencies had been deployed to maintain peace and urged political parties to avoid making accusations, saying election results should be decided by the people’s vote.
Senior Punjab Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb dismissed the PPP's claims, noting that the PPP itself was in power in AJK and was accusing its own administration of rigging. She referred to the death of the PPP worker as a matter for investigation.
