Pooch, October 11: In the upcoming Block Development Councils (BDC) elections in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch, a total of 61 candidates will contest the polls. According to Rahul Yadav, District Election Officer, 31 candidates on Friday withdrew their nominations out of 92 candidates. The BDC elections in Jammu and Kashmir will take place on October 24 from 9 am to 1 pm and the counting of votes will take place after 3 pm. Congress Boycotts Block Development Council (BDC) Elections 2019 to Protest Against Detention of Jammu and Kashmir Leaders.

The withdrawal of nominations for elections to chairpersons of Block Development Councils (BDC) ended earlier today. The scrutiny of nominations was done on Thursday for 310 blocks. The results for the second tier of the Panchayati Raj system will be announced soon after the counting of votes.

ANI Tweet:

Meanwhile, the Indian National Congress has boycotted the BDC polls citing the restrictions in Jammu and Kashmir. "We've come to realise that these elections (Block Development Council elections) are being held to facilitate only one party - ruling party. Our leaders are under detention. We have no other option but to announce that we are boycotting the election," J&K Congress President Ghulam Ahmad Mir had said.

Similarly, National Conference (NC) and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) also boycotting the upcoming elections in the valley due to detention of their top leadership.

Mainstream leaders, including former Chief Ministers Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah, are placed under the house arrest since government axed provisions of Article 370. The Jammu and Kashmir administration last week said that the political leaders and activists will be released in a phased manner.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 11, 2019 11:37 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).