MUZAFFARABAD: Members of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) will vote today to select a new prime minister for Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).
Following Sardar Tanveer Ilyas’ disqualification by the AJK High Court in a contempt case, the election was declared.
Despite having a majority in the AJK Legislative Assembly, the PTI may find it challenging to select a premier who will support Imran Khan.
Barrister Sultan Mehmood Chaudhry, the president of the AJK, broke with his own party and established a forward bloc in the legislature. Sources claim that the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) back Chaudhry’s forward bloc.
Shah Ghulam Qadir, the president of the PML-N in AJK, however, stated that their affiliation was with the PPP as per a “power-sharing formula”.
We would have been required to support the PPP candidate for PM, according to Qadir. He continued by saying that neither the PPP nor the advance bloc made touch with the party while they were in talks.
The PML-N leader stated, “If things stay unchanged, the PML-N will make the decision on its own with its seven votes.”
But according to sources, after observing Qadir’s response, AJK President Chaudhry contacted the PML-N to ask for backing for the forward bloc candidate.
Sardar Tanveer Ilyas disqualified
Sardar Tanveer Ilyas was disqualified by the AJK High Court for contempt of court last week, dealing a severe blow to PTI.
Ilyas was brought before the high court of AJK and the supreme court for using a “threatening tone” in one of his comments, which resulted in the high court’s decision.
Ilyas was found to be ineligible to hold any public office, and the court ordered that elections for a new prime minister be held by AJK’s Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), Abdul Rasheed Sulehria.
