MIRPUR: Polling was underway on Sunday in the lakeside city of Mirpur for by-election on the LA-III seat of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) legislative assembly.
Polling started at 8 am and was scheduled to continue uninterrupted at the 115 polling stations until 5 pm to allow 68,815 registered voters to exercise their right to elect a representative.
Over three thousand police personnel have been deployed for security during the elections, with 81 polling stations declared sensitive.
The contesting candidates include the Pakistan People Party's (PPP) Chaudhary Mohammad Ashraf, Barrister Sultan Mehmood of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Engineer Nauman Akram of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), Nishat Kazmi of the Jammu Kashmir Peoples Party, and independent candidate Aijaz Raza.
Arshad Mehmood Ghazi of the Pakistan Muslim Leage - Nawaz (PML-N) had earlier withdrawn his candidature in favour of the PPP candidate.
The seat was vacated after former AJK prime minister and PPP leader Barrister Sultan Mahmood resigned to join the PTI.
The News International Pakistan
