New Delhi/IBNS: The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly election, to be held for the first time since 2014, will be held in three phases, on September 18, September 25, and October 1, with results to be announced on October 4, the Election Commission said Friday.

This marks a big step forward in the poll body's efforts to meet a Supreme Court order that directed the return of democracy to Jammu and Kashmir by September 30.

Visiting Srinagar last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi confirmed that an election will be held soon and that statehood will be restored.

In preparation for the election, the Election Commission said the final voter list would be published by August 20, the day after the Amarnath Yatra ends.

Around 87 lakh voters are expected to exercise their voting rights. The EC also dismissed questions over the election crossing the top court's deadline by four days.

"The people want change... they want to script a new future," Election Commission chief Rajiv Kumar said, as he outlined the poll body's plans to hold a safe and successful election in J&K.

"We recently visited J&K to take stock of election preparation. Great enthusiasm was seen... people want to participate in the process. People want elections as early as possible..." he said, recalling the "long queues" at polling booths in J&K and Ladakh during the Lok Sabha election.

The former state has been under President's rule since August 2019 when Article 370 was abrogated and the erstwhile state was bifurcated into two Union Territories - Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.

In the last J&K Assembly election the Peoples Democratic Party emerged as the largest party with 28 seats and formed the government in alliance with the BJP's 25. However, the two fell out in 2018.

In the April-June Lok Sabha poll, the BJP and the National Conference won two seats each in J&K, with the fifth and final one going to an independent candidate. An independent also won the Ladakh seat.

National Conference leader and former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah welcomed the election dates but flagged concerns over the reshuffle of senior police officers in the region.

"After 1987-88 this is probably for the first time an election is happening in phases... it will be a new experience. For National Conference, I can say we have been preparing..." he said this afternoon.

"The EC emphasised free and fair polls... we wrote to the poll body on police transfers in the past 24 hours. They should take notice. We fear this was done to benefit the centre and the BJP."