India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting the main city in Himalayan Kashmir to campaign for his party in the staggered local election in a first such vote since New Delhi stripped the disputed region’s semi-autonomy in 2019.

Jammu and Kashmir saw a 61.38% voter turnout in the first phase of assembly elections, according to the Election Commission of India. Male turnout was 63.75%, while female turnout was 58.96%, and third gender turnout reached 40%.

Eight constituencies in the Jammu region and 16 from the Kashmir Valley voted on the first phase of assembly elections. Two more rounds of voting remain.

Three months after his worst election performance to date, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is facing another challenging vote: this time in the fragile region of Jammu and Kashmir, where separatist sentiment is strong and voters are angry with their loss of autonomy.

In Indian-controlled Kashmir, many people boycotted elections for decades in protest against Indian rule. The vote is the first in a decade, and the first since Modi’s Hindu nationalist government in 2019 scrapped the Muslim-majority region’s special status and downgraded the former state to a federally governed territory.

PM Modi praised the historic voter turnout in J&K assembly polls, promising development and statehood, while criticizing dynastic politics in the region.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took on the 'dynastic politics' of Congress, National Conference and People's Democratic Party (PDP) as he held rally in Srinagar in support of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidates.