Indian police say that gunmen killed at least seven people working on a strategic tunnel project in Indian-controlled Kashmir and injured at least five others.

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

Kashmir’s top pro-India politician says the disputed region lacks democracy four years after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Hindu nationalist party stripped its statehood.

India’s prime minister has held a crucial meeting with pro-India politicians from disputed Kashmir for the first time since New Delhi stripped the region’s semi-autonomy and jailed many of them in a crackdown.