J&K to hold panchayat polls in March

The Jammu and Kashmir government has finally decided to hold Panchayat elections in the state which were postponed last year in the aftermath of the deadly summer unrest, in March.

The state cabinet which met under the chairmanship of the state chief minister, Omar Abdullah in winter capital Jammu decided to complete the three-tier exercise by the end of May. It also approved to hold the Panchayat polls on non- party basis and complete the election process by May.

 It was also decided that the schedule for these polls will be worked out in consultation with the state chief electoral officer. It approved to hold ensuing Panchayat elections as per the existing law and decided that the process for setting up finance commission for Panchayats will be expedited.

The polls had to be postponed last year as Kashmir Valley reeled under a four-month-long summer unrest that claimed 112 lives and left hundreds others wounded.