Voters queued outside polling stations in India's Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday to vote in the first provincial election being held in a decade in the Himalayan region that has grappled with years of militant violence.

A phased election for choosing a local government in Indian-controlled Kashmir has opened in the first such vote since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government stripped the disputed region of its special status five years ago.

India’s troubled region of Jammu and Kashmir saw a brisk turnout amid tight security as voters cast their ballots on Wednesday in the first regional legislative elections in a decade. The region, which has seen years of separatist violence and is at the centre of a dispute between India and Pakistan,

NEW DELHI -- Northern India's Jammu and Kashmir region kicked off its first legislative assembly polls in about a decade on Wednesday, with restoration of the region's special status being one of the major issues. Voting will continue in October and results are due on Oct. 8.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took on the 'dynastic politics' of Congress, National Conference and People's Democratic Party (PDP) as he held rally in Srinagar in support of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidates.