GILGIT: Voters in Pakistan’s mountainous far north went to the polls on Sunday in an election that has turned the attention of the federal government and major political parties upon an otherwise neglected region facing decades of disenfranchisement.

Since shortly after independence in 1947, Gilgit-Baltistan has not officially been part of Pakistan, but forms part of the portion of disputed Kashmir that Pakistan controls. Both Delhi and Islamabad have claimed all of Kashmir since gaining independence 73 years ago, and have fought two wars over the territory.

The region is Pakistan’s only land link to China and is at the heart of the $65 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) infrastructure development plan.

For the last few weeks, campaigning has been on in full swing in the area, with candidates from Pakistan's major political parties promising to build infrastructure projects and end decades of neglect.

The Gilgit-Baltistan legislature has 33 seats — 24 general seats, six reserved for women and three for technocrats. But despite the quota, only four women will be competing. Some 330 contenders are vying for ballots of about 745,000 voters.

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz won the 2015 election in the region and ruled for five years. It hopes to win again, and Maryam Nawaz, the daughter of the party’s founder, and head has furiously campaigned in the area for the last several days. 

Senior PML-N leader and former Gilgit-Baltistan chief minister Hafiz Hafeezur Rehman said his party had "left no stone unturned" to make the region prosperous.

But prosperity is not felt on the ground. Pakistan's National Assembly and Senate have no representation from Gilgit-Baltistan, and the region receives only a fraction of the national budget.

In many areas, women have never cast their votes. 

Sadia Danish of the opposition Pakistan People's Party (PPP) comes from one such area, Tangir, in Diamir district.

“Daril and Tangir regions of Diamir district have poor literacy rate and women are mostly kept confined to domestic works," PPP Gilgit-Baltistan chapter president Amjad Hussain Advocate told Arab News. "That’s why we have awarded the party’s ticket to the female candidate in Tangir area to spread awareness among women about their due rights."

Earlier this month, the federal government said it had decided to elevate the impoverished region’s status to that of a province, which would give it greater political representation.

The announcement came a year after India changed the status of the portion of Kashmir it controls, taking away the regions autonomy. India rejects Khan’s plan to change Gilgit-Baltistan’s status, and has called the election there an exercise to cover up Pakistan’s occupation of the region. Islamabad denies this. 

Representatives of the PTI say they are confident the party will win a majority in the polls and form the local government. PTI Gilgit division president Raja Jahanzeb said a "fair election" was being held in the region for the first time.