Nineteen candidates saw an extremely close contest in the maiden District Development Council (DDC) polls in Jammu and Kashmir where the margin of victory was less than 100.
Three unidentified terrorists were killed in a fierce encounter in north Kashmir Baramulla district on Thursday.
Kashmir witnessed the season's heaviest snowfall.
Curfew remained in force in entire Srinagar district and Anantnag town on Saturday to thwart the separatists' plan to stage a two-day sit-in in the city centre even as the death toll in the ongoing unrest climbed to 56 in the Valley with the death of a youth injured in firing.
Officials said more than five inches of snow has accumulated in the main Gulmarg bowl so far.
The encounters took place in Pulwama, Ganderbal and Kupwara districts of the Kashmir valley, a police official said.
A day after encounter, internet services were suspended in Kupwara district of Kashmir on Sunday.
Search operations were on in the area.
Four heavily-armed militants were killed by security forces in Keran sector near the Line of Control in north Kashmir's Kupwara district.
Curfew continued to cripple the Valley for the tenth day.
Ten days after Hizbul Mujahideen leader Burhan Wani was eliminated by the armed forces, Kashmir continues to see massive unrest, with the violence claiming over 40 lives.
Separately, the hunger strike by climate activist Sonam Wangchuk in Leh to "remind" the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Centre of its promise to safeguard the Union Territory's fragile ecology and unique indigenous tribal culture entered its 15th day.
'Assam Rifles have prevented a large number of genocides and killings.'
Indian and Pakistan troops exchanged heavy fire in the Nowgam sector of the Line of Control in north Kashmir Baramulla district on Wednesday after two paramilitary border security force troopers were injured in sniper fire from across the LoC.
A change in the name of the Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) magazine 'suggests a refocusing' of the terror group from Afghanistan to Kashmir, a United Nations report has said.
Two officers -- Lt Colonel Mukesh Jha and Major Amardeep Singh -- are among the five injured army personnel.
In a major arms haul, alert Indian army troops recovered 40 weapons from near the Line of Control in the Farkian Gali area of north Kashmir's Kupwara district on Saturday.
The Army sources said the five personnel include two officers. According to the sources, a hunt has been launched to trace the missing personnel, while the operation to neutralise the militants was also on.
The dismissal of the five --most of whom have cases registered against them for terror activities -- was ordered under Article 311 of the Indian Constitution.
The terrorists were later identified as Pervaiz Ahmad Wani of Galoora Handwara and Naeem Ahmad Najar of Shelpora Brad, Sopore, he said.
The body of Sehrai, 77, was handed over to his family on Wednesday evening and taken in a police escort to Kupwara in north Kashmir, at least 350 km from Jammu, where he would be buried at his ancestral graveyard in accordance with the COVID-19 guidelines.
Five militants were killed in a day-long fierce gunfight in frontier north Kashmir Kupwara district on Saturday.
Indian Army chief General Bikram Singh on Tuesday assured Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah that incidents of June 24 and June 30 would not happen in future.
The deceased have been identified as Major K P Rane, hawaldars Jamie Singh and Vikramjeet and rifleman Mandeep.
The separatist Hurriyat Conference is finished in Jammu and Kashmir but attempts are being made to keep it alive from Pakistan, Director General of Police Dilbag Singh said on Monday, adding that the militancy in the region is "on crutches".
Ten incidents of stone pelting were reported from Srinagar, Anantnag, Pulwama, Kulgam, Shopian, Awantipora and Sopore.
As many as 160 terrorists were killed and 102 arrested in Jammu and Kashmir in 2019.
Surface and air links between Kashmir and rest of the country were cut off on Wednesday due to snowfall in the valley as the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway was closed for traffic and all flights to Srinagar Airport cancelled.
Main markets and other business establishments across the Valley remained shut and public transport was off the roads.
This was the lowest minimum temperature recorded in the city since 1991, when the mercury had fallen to minus 11.4 degree Celsius.
Most of the suspects behind the killing of a key aide of Jaish e Mohammed terror group chief Masood Azhar and his two associates have been arrested, the police chief of Pakistan's Punjab province said on Friday, days after the trio were shot dead at a mosque in Sialkot city.
The earthquake epicentred in the Hindukush mountain range in Afghanistan struck at around 2.40 pm, sending ripples across several states like Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi- National Capital Region, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Rajasthan.
The killing of the two terrorists is a huge success for the forces, he said. Kumar said LeT terrorists were also behind the killing of Bhupinder Singh, Block Development Council chairman, Khag, in central Kashmir's Budgam district.
A 67-year-old resident, Mangat Ram and a BSF jawan was injured in the firing.
Two terrorists were killed in an encounter with security forces in Sopore area of north Kashmir, taking the toll to eight in the last four days of counter-insurgency operations.
National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah said notifying the rules for the CAA days before the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections shows the Bharatiya Janata Party is not confident about winning 400 seats in the ensuing polls.
The casualty comes barely a week after multiple ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops along the LoC in north Kashmir left 11 people, including five security personnel, dead on November 13.
Two militants of Hizbul Mujaheedin outfit were killed in an encounter in north Kashmir's Baramulla district Saturday morning.
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