Doda: Amidst heightened security alert, Jammu and Kashmir goes to the fourth and final phase of polling on October 8 to the state Assembly covering six constituencies in the militant dominated district.

Voting will also be held in Lolab constituency where polling originally scheduled in the first round on September 16, but was countermanded following the assassination of Law Minister and National Conference nominee Mushtaq Ahmad Lone on September 11. Congress on October 6 announced withdrawal of its candidate in favour of an independent Abdul Haq Khan in Lolab.

An estimated 4.85 lakh voters are expected to choose their representatives from 67 candidates, including Minister of state for Home Khalid Najib Sohrawardy, state chiefs of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Daya Kishan Kotwal and Sheikh Rehman respectively, Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief Ghulam Nabi Azad's kin Mohd Sharief Naiz and former Advocate General Mohd Aslam Goni.

Security has been beefed up and para-military forces and Army patrolling stepped up to thwart militant plans to disrupt polling in the district.

Apprehending terrorist violence to disrupt polling on October 8 in Banihal, Inderwal, Doda, Baderwah, Ramban, Kishtwar (all in Doda) and Lolab in Kashmir Valley, security forces have launched area-domination and sanitisation operations to ensure peaceful balloting.

Nearly 18,000 additional para-troopers have been deployed in the six constituencies in this hub of militancy to ensure free polling, official sources said.

The para-troopers are drawn from Border Security Force (BSF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), ITBP and J&K armed police.

PTI