Budgam, Oct 08: While most of the voters in Budgam’s lone ward decided to boycott Urban Local Bodies polls, around 17 percent voters exercised their franchise to elect Councillor for Ward 5 – Bazar Mohalla – here on Monday, officials said.
“Out of 642 eligible voters, 109 cast their ballot including 69 males and 40 females,” they said.
The voting started from 7 am and ended at 4 pm. Polling was held here at Government Girls Higher Secondary School Budgam.
In the first six hours of polling till 2 pm, only 55 votes were polled. But in the last two hours, 54 persons turned up to cast their ballot.
It is pertinent to mention that voting was held only in Ward 5 of Budgam which has 72 wards. The remaining 71 wards, wither had nobody in fray, or threw up the only candidates as unopposed winners.
Bazar Mohalla falls in Budgam Municipal Committee and has 642 eligible voters including 329 females.
The contest is between Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party candidates. The votes would be counted on October 20.
Congress leader from Budgam, Hakeem Rohullah Gazi, while talking to media-persons said that his party decided to participate in elections “only to regain faith among people which they had lost” after BJP entered in Kashmir.
Notably, despite having “authority letter” issued by Chief Electoral Officer Jammu and Kashmir, media-persons were denied entry for sometime into the polling station here by the government forces.
During the last hours of polls, unknown persons hurdled stones at the polling station. However, no one was injured in the incident.
Meanwhile, as there is nobody in the fray for the areas going to polls on that day, there would be no polling in Budgam in the second phase on October 10.
