Safwat Zargar

With Ladakh under central rule, locals say their concerns about loss of land and livelihood have gone unheard.

The legislature of the union territory is at the mercy of the all-powerful lieutenant governor for funds and even passing laws, say experts.

The party has gained from delimitation and other steps that the Centre took to change the electoral map of the region.

The verdict is a reflection of the voters' determination not to let the mandate be fractured, said observers.

In an interview to Scroll, Srinagar MP Ruhullah Mehdi says that the southern states' push for greater federalism will help Kashmir's cause in a future India.

A senior police official in Kashmir denied any link between the rise in attacks with the swearing-in of the National Conference government.

Villagers told Scroll they were eventually dissuaded from filing a police report by Army officials.

The National Conference cannot afford to anger groups in Pir Panjal, who benefit from the new quota, nor its supporters in the Valley, who oppose it.

Escalating costs and the slowdown in J&K's economy are to blame, say experts. Like many Muslims, 63-year-old Mohammad Ashraf wants to go on the Hajj.

In Pang valley, between puffs from an oxygen cylinder, I wondered at the wisdom of trying to build a mega power project in this extremely challenging landscape.