A HUGE turnout is expected on Wednesday in crucial local elections in Indian-controlled Kashmir as voters attempt to deny victory to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party in the disputed region.

The vote since Mr Modi’s government, led by the far-right Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), scrapped the Muslim-majority region’s special status in 2019 and downgraded the former state to a federally governed territory. 

For decades, many people have boycotted elections in protest at Indian rule. But Abdul Rashid, a resident of the southern Kashmir village of Shangus, said that boycotts “will not work in this election.”