Muzaffarabad, August 27, 2026: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Nawaz Sharif on Thursday nominated Barrister Syed Iftikhar Ali Gilani as the party’s candidate for the office of prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), as the party strengthened its position in the Legislative Assembly.
PML-N leader and Punjab Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb confirmed that Nawaz Sharif had directed Gilani to submit his nomination papers for the election of the AJK prime minister.
She said Gilani’s nomination had been made with the approval of the PML-N president.
Gilani was recently elected to the AJK Legislative Assembly on the reserved seat for technocrats after the PML-N secured six of the eight reserved seats, further consolidating its position in the house.
The eight reserved seats comprise five seats for women and one each for technocrats, Ulema and Mashaikh, and overseas Kashmiris.
The PML-N won three of the five women’s seats, while the PPP secured the remaining two. PML-N candidates Seharish Qamar, Maryam Zaman and Maryam Idrees were elected on the women’s seats, while PPP candidates Farzana Yaqub and Zobia Khurshid won the other two.
In one of the contests, Zobia Khurshid and Rifat Abid secured five votes each, with Khurshid eventually declared successful through a draw.
Besides Gilani’s election on the technocrat seat, PML-N candidate Pir Mazhar Saeed Shah won the seat reserved for Ulema and Mashaikh, while Abdul Rehman Arain secured the seat reserved for overseas Kashmiris.
The results increased the PML-N’s strength in the AJK Legislative Assembly to 31 seats, while the PPP’s tally rose to 14. With the support of one member of the Jammu and Kashmir Awami Dast-o-Bazu (JK ADB), the PML-N now has the backing of 32 lawmakers.
However, the government formation process is taking place without seven members, as elections in seven constituencies in Poonch and Sudhnoti districts are yet to be held.
The PML-N had already emerged as the largest party in the recently concluded three-phase general elections, winning 25 seats compared with the PPP’s 11.
In the first phase, held across 13 constituencies of Mirpur Division, the PML-N won nine seats while the PPP secured four.
The PML-N consolidated its position in the second phase, held on August 2 across eight constituencies of Muzaffarabad Division and all 12 refugee constituencies, winning 15 seats against the PPP’s six.
The third and final phase covered two constituencies, with the PML-N and PPP securing one seat each, taking their final general-election tallies to 25 and 11 respectively.
The elections were, however, marred by allegations of rigging, with the PPP questioning the conduct of the polling process.
Following the second phase, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari criticised the federal government and indicated that his party would intensify its political opposition.
The PML-N rejected the allegations, while Nawaz Sharif urged political stakeholders to avoid turning political differences into personal enmity and expressed concern over the political environment in the region.
