Residents of Indian-controlled Kashmir are participating in a local election under tight security, marking the first time in decades that separatist groups are not boycotting the vote. For decades, separatists in Kashmir boycotted elections, rejecting India's rule over the region.

Under elaborate security, residents in Indian-controlled Kashmir voted Wednesday in the second phase of a staggered election for a local government, which were not boycotted by separatists like last few elections.

Indian-administered Kashmir is heading to the polls in its first local elections since India's nationalist Hindu government stripped the Muslim-majority region of its semi-autonomous status. DW's Adil Bhat is in the city of Srinagar to gauge the mood.