6 women killed as van plunges into ravine in Pakistan-administered Kashmir

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan (AA) – At least six women were killed and as many injured when their van plunged into a ravine in Pakistan-administered Kashmir on Sunday, police and local media reported.

The accident took place in scenic Neelam valley, which sits 102 kilometers (63 miles) from Muzaffarabad, the capital of the Islamabad-controlled part of the disputed valley, also called Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

The deceased and the injured were on their way to cast vote in the local government elections, which are being held after three decades.

The bodies of six women have been recovered, while other six injured women and the van driver have been transported to a hospital in critical conditions, police said.

Traffic accidents in most parts of the valley, especially in Neelam valley, are common because of narrow roads and hilly terrain.

The local body polls will be conducted in three phases across the state, with the first phase underway in the Muzaffarabad, Neelam and Jhelum Valley districts from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. local time without any break.

Phase two will be conducted in the Poonch division on Dec. 3 and phase three in the Mirpur division on Dec. 8, according to the Election Commission of Pakistan.

The erstwhile princely state has long been a thorny issue between arch-rivals Pakistan and India, with both claiming it in full.

The two South Asian neighbors have fought three full-scale wars – two of them on Kashmir – since their partition in 1947.