At least six people were killed and eight others, including the driver, were injured when a voting jeep in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) went into a deep ravine on Sunday.
After 31 years, the local government elections were held in three districts of Muzaffarabad Division, and the vehicle was carrying Thanda Pani villager women voters for the first round of the vote.
Around 12.30 p.m., the jeep is said to have gone off the road and fallen into a ravine that is 300 feet deep. The police immediately launched a rescue effort and transported the injured and the bodies to the hospital.
Six of the unfortunate jeep’s passengers perished instantly, and six others were said to be in critical condition.
Polling was briefly suspended after the event.
An official in disaster management was quoted by a local news outlet as claiming that the van was overloaded with passengers.
Sardar Tanveer Ilyas, the prime minister of the autonomous state, expressed regret and anguish at the event, describing it as “heart-wrenching.” In a tweet, he additionally disclosed that he had instructed the administration to assist the injured in any way possible.
The incident also prompted Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, the foreign minister, to express regret.
The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) posted on Twitter that the party leader shared the grievances of the bereaved families equally and that the local office holders and party members should do the same.
