India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting the main city in Himalayan Kashmir to campaign for his party in the staggered local election in a first such vote since New Delhi stripped the disputed region’s semi-autonomy in 2019.

Once a powerful force in the region, separatist movement Jamaat-e-Islami’s surprise return to electoral politics after decades of boycotting elections in Kashmir has surprised many. Maroosha Muzaffar

With fresh faces emerging to challenge the traditional political powerhouses, the region’s political dynamics already appear to be changing.