JAMMU, Oct 6: Wait for the results of Assembly elections will be over on Tuesday when counting of votes will be taken up for 90 seats of Jammu and Kashmir at all 20 district under tight security arrangements and all results are expected to be declared by this evening if everything goes well.“Security arrangements similar to the elections will be in place on the day of counting in the entire UT of Jammu and Kashmir as the authorities are anticipating victory processions by the winning candidates and the political parties. There will be no laxity in security till all results are declared and the polling process is complete by October 10,” officials told .
Officials said counting of votes will be taken up at all district of Jammu and Kashmir for the Assembly seats falling within the jurisdiction of a particular district.
In Jammu division’s 43 seats, Jammu district has highest number of 11 Assembly seats followed by six in Kathua, five in Rajouri, four in Udhampur, three each in Samba, Poonch, Reasi, Doda and Kishtwar and two in Ramban.This will be the first elected Government to be formed in Jammu and Kashmir post abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution of India as well as conversion of erstwhile State into the Union Territory excepting Ladakh, a division of J&K till 2019, which was declared as separate UT. Ladakh had four MLAs in the last Assembly elections held in 2014. Congress had won three seats including Leh, Nubra and Kargil while Independent had emerged victorious from Zanskar.
The officials said a three-tier security set up has been put in place at all counting centres across Jammu and Kashmir.
“Only authorized counting agents of the contesting candidates and staff posted on counting duty will be allowed inside the counting halls,” the official said.
He said the tally of votes for each candidate will be announced after every round of counting on the public address system outside the counting halls.
The first ever polls in Jammu and Kashmir after it was made a Union Territory witnessed a voter turnout of 63.45 per cent, less than the 65.52 percent recorded in the 2014 Assembly elections.
The first Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir since 2014 was held over three phases with 24 seats going to polls in the first phase on September 18. The second phase of polling was held on September 25 in which 26 seats went to polls while the polling for remaining 40 seats was held on October 1.
The Exit Polls, which came out on Saturday, have put the National Conference-Congress alliance in the strong position with the regional party getting the lion’s share of the seats.
The BJP is expected to slightly improve on its tally of 25 seats which it had won in the 2014 Assembly polls while the PDP, which had won 28 seats in the polls held 10 years ago, is predicted to win less than 10 seats this time by the Exit Polls.
The pollsters have not given much of a chance to the new and emerging parties like the People’s Conference, Apni Party, Democratic Azad Party of Ghulam Nabi Azad and Awami Ittehad Party of Lok Sabha member
