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An estimated 41.4 per cent of voters on Tuesday exercised their franchise in the third phase of polling in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections despite a determined bid by militants to disrupt the process by launching a series of attacks killing 14 people, including six BSF personnel.
Twenty-seven constituencies, with an estimated 1.8 million (18 lakh) voters spread over four districts of Udhampur, Kathua, Pulwama and Anantnag went to the polls to decide the fate of 223 candidates in what the Election Commission in New Delhi termed as the 'most difficult' phase.
The highest turnout of 59 per cent was recorded in Kathua district, followed by Udhampur (56) and militancy-infested Pulwama (28) and Anantnag (25).
Anantnag district recorded the lowest turnout of 25 per cent while Kathua saw the highest turnout of 59 per cent, Deputy Election Commissioner Sayan Chatterjee told reporters in Delhi.
Fifty-six per cent of the electorate cast their votes in Udhampur district while 28 per cent did so in Pahalgam, he said.
The turnout is close to that in the first two phases of polling for the 87-member house when over 48 per cent of the electorate exercised their franchise.
Polling for the penultimate round involved 16 assembly constituencies in Pulwama and Anantnag districts in the Kashmir valley, considered as hot-bed of militancy, and 11 in the border districts of Kathua and Udhampur in Jammu region.
Minutes before polling began, three heavily-armed militants dressed in police uniforms fired indiscriminately on a Jammu-bound bus at around 0645 hours IST killing eight persons spot and injuring 12, at Harinagar on the Jammu-Delhi National Highway in Kathua district.
They also targeted a nearby power grid station.
Director General of Police A K Suri said one of the militants was later killed by security forces.
Militants also targeted polling booths at over a dozen places in Anantnag and Pulwana districts in the Kashmir valley leaving nearly 20 people, including security personnel, injured.
A little known militant outfit Al-Arifeen has claimed responsibility for most of the attacks.
State Chief Electoral Officer Pramod Jain told reporters that the turnout of voters was the highest in Bani constituency in Kathua district (67) and the lowest in Pampore in Pulwama district (seven).
In the Kashmir valley, Rajpora recorded the highest polling percentage of 37, which was lower than the lowest in Jammu division - 46 per cent recorded at Hiranagar.
Most of the violence was reported from militancy-infested Tral and Shopian in Pulwama district and Kokernag and Kulgam in Anantnag district, badly affecting the turnout in these constituencies, official sources said.
Among those in the fray in this phase are ministers Bashir Ahmed Nengroo and Sakina Itoo, and People's Democratic Party senior vice-president Mehbooba Mufti.
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