印度查谟和克什米尔邦开始投票

Voters are casting ballots in the first stage of an election in Indian Kashmir.

Polling places were heavily guarded when they opened Tuesday because of security concerns.  Separatists had called for a boycott of the election.  Rebel groups have been fighting Indian forces for independence or a merger with Pakistan since 1989.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has made an aggressive effort to win control of the 87-member assembly in the Muslim-majority Jammu and Kashmir state.

Party officials say if it wins it will seek to fully integrate the disputed region with India.

Jammu and Kashmir will vote in five phases, with results expected on December 23.