Jammu and Kashmir awaits assembly poll results

After completion of the five phases of polling in Jammu and Kashmir on Dec 20 with overall 66 percent turnout in all five phases, now everyone is awaiting the results.

IBNS learnt from Election Commission sources that 28 counting centres consisting of 94 halls have been set up to conduct the counting process in all district headquarters.

Authorities are making massive security arrangements to prevent any attempt  by militants to disrupt the polls.  

The counting will start from 8:30 am and first trends are expected to trickle in within an hour.

Jammu and Kashmir, where polling was held for 87 seats, witnessed large turnout since 1987 despite boycott calls from separatist groups as well as militant outfits.

In the 2008 Assembly Election, National Conference  emerged as the largest party winning 28 seats out of 87 Assembly seats.

PDP was second with 21 seats while the Congress got third spot winning 17 seats, BJP, however, could win only 11 seats.

In an early Exit Poll which claimed that People's Democratic Party (PDP) is going to emerge as the single largest party in Jammu and Kashmir, PDP is projected to win within a range of 35-40 seats in a House of 87.

While National Conference is projected to win within a range of 8-12 seats its coalition partner Congress is projected to win within a range of 6-10 seats.

 Chief Minister and National Conference working president Omar Abdullah downplayed  the exit polls,  projecting fall of his party.

"There will now be a flurry of exit polls but I'll wait for the only exit poll that really matters - the one on the 23rd of December," Omar tweeted as one of the exit polls predicted nearly 14 seats to his party, half of what it has managed in last two consecutive elections to 87-mmeber state assembly.

The Election Commission had banned exit polls till the completion of assembly elections in the state.

(Reporting by Saleem Iqbal Qadri )