The NC-- Congress is heading for a victory in the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council- Kargil election.
Counting for all 26 seats started at 8 a.m. today and by 1 p.m., Congress had won three NC two seats and BJP one out of the six results declared.
The NC Congress have formed an alliance against the BJP and have together fielded 39 candidates, 22 by Congress and 17 from NC. In all 89 candidates are in the fray. The BJP has fielded 17 candidates. The rest are independents and the Aam Adami Party.
This is the fifth election to the LADHC Kargil and the first after the region was separated from Jammu and Kashmir after the repeal of Article 370 by the BJP.
Voting for 26 seats was held on October 4. Trends are expected to pour in a couple of hours as Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) have been used in the elections for the first time.
The counting is expected to be completed in the evening. Of the 89 candidates who participated in the polls, Congress fielded 22 candidates, 17 each by the National Conference (NC) and BJP and four from AAP.
The election recorded a polling of 77.61 per cent as out of the total 95,388 voters, 74,026 exercised their right of franchise.
The officials said the counting started at 8 a.m. and all arrangements were in place for the smooth conduct of the counting and the declaration of the results.
Stringent security arrangements have been put in place at and around the Government Polytechnic College here where the counting of the votes is being held, the officials added.
Congress and the NC fought the elections unitedly against the BJP. The two parties, part of the I.N.D.I.A alliance, formed a pre-election alliance against the BJP, with the two parties.
The two parties focused on areas where the contest against the BJP was tough.
The new council will take office before October 11, replacing the existing Council led by NC’s Feroz Ahmad Khan, who completed its five-year term on October 1. Four Councillors with voting rights will be nominated by the administration after the elections.
The BJP, which won one seat in the last election and later increased its tally to three with the inclusion of two PDP councillors.
The LAHDC-Kargil elections were rescheduled from September 10 to October 4 following the Supreme Court's intervention, which noted the UT administration's denial of the "plough" symbol to NC candidates. The Supreme Court ruled in favour of the NC, dismissing the Ladakh administration's plea on the issue and imposing a fine of Rs 1 lakh on it.
-- With PTI inputs