Polling began on Sunday for the second phase of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) elections, with voters casting ballots in nine constituencies of Muzaffarabad Division and 12 seats reserved for Kashmiri refugees residing in Pakistan.

Voting began at 8am and will continue without any break until 5pm.

In Muzaffarabad Division, polling is being held across nine constituencies in the districts of Muzaffarabad, Neelum and Jhelum Valley, where a total of 890,621 registered voters are eligible to cast their ballots.

The Election Commission has established 1,483 polling stations across the division to facilitate the voting process.

A total of 208 candidates, representing the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP), other political parties and independent candidates, are contesting the nine seats.

Polling postponed in LA-27 Muzaffarabad-1

Polling for the LA-27 Muzaffarabad-1 constituency was postponed after polling staff failed to reach their assigned stations.

The Chief Election Commissioner ordered the postponement of the election in the constituency.

A revised election schedule is expected to be issued later on Sunday afternoon.

Voting on seats reserved for refugees

Meanwhile, polling is also underway for 12 constituencies reserved for Kashmiri refugees living in Pakistan, with voters casting their ballots at polling stations set up in cities across the country.

The seats comprise six constituencies from Jammu and six from the Kashmir Valley.

In LA-38 Jammu-5, voting has also begun, where 48,504 registered voters are expected to elect their representative.

Voting in KP

Meanwhile, polling is under way for the LA-45 Valley-6 and LA-39 Jammu-6 refugee constituencies in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with voting beginning at polling stations across the province, including Peshawar.

According to the Election Commission, LA-45 Valley-6 has 7,655 registered voters, comprising 4,121 men and 3,534 women.

A total of 41 polling stations have been established for the constituency, including five male, 10 female and 26 combined polling stations, with 70 polling booths set up to facilitate voters.

In Peshawar, two polling stations have been established for 1,520 registered voters.

The male polling station has been set up at Government Shaheed Osama Zafar Centennial Model High School, while the female polling station is located at Government Shaheed Hasnain Sharif Higher Secondary School.

Seven candidates are contesting the seat, including Khawaja Muhammad Dilawar Wani of Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference, Abdul Hameed Butt of Jamaat-e-Islami, Abdul Majeed Khan of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), and Mirza Khalil-ur-Rehman Baig of Jammu Kashmir United Movement.

Independent candidates Bashir Ahmed Khan, Muhammad Zaryab and Muhammad Fayyaz are also in the race.

For LA-39 Jammu-6, a combined polling station has been established in Peshawar at Government Shaheed Syed Hussain Shah Higher Secondary School.

The constituency has 168 registered voters, according to the Election Commission.