SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Indian authorities say independent candidates have overwhelmingly won village council elections held in Indian-controlled Kashmir months after New Delhi imposed a harsh security crackdown and stripped the region of its semi-autonomous status.

The elections were boycotted by most political parties, including those whose leaders were sympathetic to the Indian government but have been detained since the Aug. 5 crackdown.

Chief Electoral Officer Shailendra Kumar says independent candidates won the chairmanships of 217 areas, followed by candidates from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party in 81 blocks. The voters were village council members, and the general public did not participate.

Modi's party did not boycott the elections.

Kumar said in a statement late Thursday that elections were conducted in 280 areas, while chairmen in 27 others ran unopposed.