3rd phase of AJK elections: PM Rathore trails PML-N rival in unofficial results

The sitting Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) prime minister, Faisal Mumtaz Rathore, and both his predecessors lost to their rivals in three of the four constituencies in Poonch division that went to the polls on Monday, in an election marred by allegations of rigging and violence, as well as disruptions and suspension of polling at some places. The biggest upset was the defeat of Muslim Conference president Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan in LA-14 (Dhirkot), a constituency from where he, and before him his uncle and father, had been elected in all nine elections since 1985. His defeat also appeared to underscore the political decline of what was once the largest and longest-ruling party in Azad Jammu…