India’s Kashmir holds first regional election since losing autonomy

Voters have begun casting their ballots in regional elections in Indian-administered Kashmir.

Kashmiris lined up outside polling stations on Wednesday morning to vote in a local government election for the first time since the disputed territory lost its semi-autonomous status in 2019.

Nine million registered voters will choose members of the Himalayan region’s 90-seat legislature. After Wednesday’s first phase of voting, second and third rounds will be held on September 25 and October 1. Votes will be counted on October 8, with results expected the same day.

Kashmiri political analyst Sheikh Showkat Hussain told Al Jazeera the election is significant because it has “become a sort of referendum” on the region’s historic special status, which was revoked by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

That move, upheld by the Supreme Court last year, sparked anger and fear in India’s only Muslim-majority region, with many worried under Modi’s Hindu nationalism, New Delhi aimed to change its demographics.

Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party-led (BJP) government has said that getting rid of the region’s special status restored normalcy in the area and helped its development.

What are the issues?

Kashmir’s local election is being contested by regional parties promising to restore its special status and India’s main opposition Congress party – which has allied with a prominent regional group.

The legislative assembly will have powers to debate local issues, make laws and approve decisions for governing the territory. However, it will not be able to restore the region’s special status, with that the remit of the federal government.