Moscow: Russians voted on Sunday in an election that saw Vladimir Putin virtually secure an expected victory in the presidential election by winning 75.91 per cent of votes with 70 per cent of ballots counted, preliminary data from the Central Election Commission (CEC) showed.
So far, Communist Party candidate Pavel Grudinin got 13.39 per cent of the vote, while head of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia Vladimir Zhirinovsky received 6.34 per cent, reports Xinhua.
In a short speech to thousands of supporters near Red Square late on Sunday, Putin thanked people who voted for him, saying that his election result was "very decent."
As of 1500 GMT, the voter turnout stood at 59.93 per cent, slightly up from 58.3 percent in 2012, Xinhua quoted the CEC as saying.
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Srinagar (PTI): Kashmir's chief priest Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Friday claimed he was put under house arrest and not allowed to offer the congregational prayers at the Jamia Masjid here.
"For the third consecutive Friday in Ramzan I have been put under arbitrary house arrest-never conveyed in writing, but enforced by placing police vehicles and large contingents in front of my gate and the entire area, chocking gully points and lanes with concertina wires, disallowing traffic movement, all to prevent me from delivering the
Friday sermon at Jama Masjid!" Mirwaiz said in a post on X.
For the third consecutive Friday in Ramzan I have been put under arbitrary house arrest-never conveyed in writing, but enforced by placing police vehicles and large contingents in front of my gate and the entire area, chocking gully points and lanes with concertina wires,… pic.twitter.com/90m78aSmBC
— Mirwaiz Umar Farooq (@MirwaizKashmir) March 20, 2026
He also posted pictures purportedly showing a large contingent of security forces and police vehicles outside the gate of his residence in Nigeen locality of the city here.
Mirwaiz, who delivers the Friday sermon at the grand mosque in Nowhatta area of the city, said his house detention "conveys panic of the rulers".
"While it conveys panic of the rulers, the centrality of Jama Masjid for the Muslims of the region has unfortunately always been a thorn in their side, as are Muslim institutions and identity, which they want to undermine. But such measures cannot erase identity nor weaken faith. These attempts will fail," he added.
