Agence France Presse

Srinagar, February 1:

Police and paramilitary forces were on high alert as civic elections were held today in Kashmir’s two biggest cities for the first time in decades, officials and witnesses said.

Muslim rebels staged a spate of deadly attacks on candidates, party workers and rallies in the lead-up to elections, and Muslim separatists have called for a boycott of the vote. Civic elections have not been held in Kashmir for the past 27 years, partly because of the insurgency but also due to fears by the previous National Conference party of creation of a rival power base.

The elections is being held in stages to allow mobilisation of security forces. Residents of Srinagar and Jammu were voting to elect mayors today.

But in Srinagar no voters had turned up at most polling stations in the first two hours after they opened at 8 am, residents said.

Since 1989, turnout of less than 10 per cent has been recorded in state and federal elections in Srinagar. “We have been waiting since morning and no one has turned up,” said Idrees Ahmed, an election official at one of the tightly guarded stations.

“We have made adequate security arrangements for peaceful elections,” said a senior police officer. At least 40,000 people have died in Kashmir since an Islamic insurgency against Indian rule began in 1989, according to Indian figures. Separatists put the toll twice as high.

Overnight, an election officer and a policeman were injured in a grenade attack

on a polling station in Srinagar’s Batamaloo area, police said.

In Jammu witnesses said voting had started picking up despite the winter chill.