The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Election Commission on Tuesday announced that elections in the region, which were originally slated for July 27, would now be held in three phases ending on August 10.

AJK Election Commissioner retired Justice Ghulam Mustafa Mughal made the announcement at a press conference, citing the unavailability of security forces due to ongoing operations in the provinces.

He said that polls will be held in three phases:

• July 27: 13 constituencies of Mirpur division
• August 2: nine constituencies of Muzaffarabad division and all 12 refugee constituencies
• August 10: 11 constituencies of Poonch division

Addressing the media, Mughal said the changes in the election schedule were made keeping in view the ongoing situation in AJK.

He explained that the decision was made so that contingents of the army could be “available in all divisions in sufficient numbers” for security arrangements during the polling.

The election commissioner said that after polling would be completed in Mirpur on July 27, the “same army will move to Muzaffarabad” for the August 2 voting.

He stressed that the changes have been made so that a “free and fair election” can be held under stringent security provided by the army and other paramilitary forces.

Mughal further stated that the stage-wise polling schedule has been decided after consulting with the political parties, adding that he believed it would not have a “major effect” on the results.

Replying to a query, he clarified that the results would still be announced the same day wherever the voting takes place.

PML-N and PPP have stepped up their election campaigns recently, with their top leadership taking charge of the election campaign to galvanise their support base.

Observers see this election as PPP vs PML-N — with some claiming that the election campaign will be trickier for the PML-N because of resentment against the political party over its purported role in the crackdown on protests led by the banned Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC).

The PPP has allied with the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam—Fazl (JUI-F) to jointly contest the polls.

Last month, PPP finalised its candidates for 35 of the 45 AJK assembly seats, while withholding decisions on eight constituencies and allocating two seats to its electoral ally JUI-F.

The regional administration and the JAAC have been at odds over various issues, most notably the committee’s demand to abolish the 12 seats in the region’s Legislative Assembly that are reserved for refugees from Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir who settled in mainland Pakistan after 1947.

Following the JAAC’s call for widespread protests on June 9 demanding the abolition of the 12 seats, it was declared a proscribed organisation on June 5. JAAC protests and the administration’s response have repeatedly turned violent over the past few weeks.

PPP’s Raja Pervez Ashraf has said that the issue of refugee seats is constitutional in nature and would be decided by the upcoming AJK Legislative Assembly.

More to follow