Daily Times

The nine-day hectic tug of power in the power corridors of Azad Jammu and Kashmir ultimately reached to its logical end through a proper constitutional democratic process after Azad Jammu Kashmir Legislative Assembly, the Lower House of the AJK Parliament, elected the Independent candidate Ch. Anwar ul Haq as the 15th Prime Minister of Azad government of the State of Jammu and Kashmir unopposed with a thumping majority of 48 votes in the 53-seat House on Thursday. The newly-elected Prime Minister Ch. Anwar ul haq will head the coalition set up of the new government of Azad Jammu Kashmir comprising on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Pakistan Peoples Party and Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), (AJK Chapters) as the law makers belonging to all the three parties reached an understanding to form the coalition government electing Ch. Anwar ul Haq as Leader of the House and the Prime Minister of the AJK government.

The office had fallen vacant after the full court bench of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) High Court on Tuesday last (April 11) had disqualified Prime Minister Sardar Tanveer Ilyas from being a member of the legislative assembly for contempt of the court. The AJK HC order of disqualification of Sardar Tanveer Illayas from the PM office was kept intact by the Supreme Court of Azad Jammu Kashmir. Ch. Anwar ul Haq, originally belongs to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf AJK Chapter, elected MLA from Bhimbher City (AJK) electoral constituency in AJK general elections-2021, emerged as the only candidate who filed the nomination papers for the top slot as leader of the house by the deadline wee hours on Thursday in line with the elections schedule which was announced late Wednesday. No any other candidate filed the nomination papers by the end of the stipulated time against the triumphant only candidate Ch. Anwar ul Haq for the office.

All two major parties of the formerly united opposition including all 12 belonging to PPP AJK and 07 belonging to PML-N AJK in the AJK Legislative Assembly polled their votes in favor of the victorious PM Ch. Anwar ul Haq during the polling process held later on in the assembly session held in the mid night of Wednesday and Thursday in the State metropolis with the Deputy Speaker Ch. Riaz Gujjar in the Chair. 29 out of a total of PTI members of the AJK Legislative Assembly cast their votes in favor of Ch. Anwar ul Haq electing him Prime Minister.

The only MLAs belonging to All Jammu Kashmir Muslim Conference and Jammu Kashmir Peoples Party Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan and Sardar Hassan Ibrahim Khan respectively did not polled their votes. Likewise, the MLAs Mrs. Shahida Sagheer and Ali Shan Soni, belonging to PTI AJK, abstained from casting their vote in favor of the only candidate, Ch. Anwar ul haq, who was later declared elected unopposed as the Prime Minister of Azad government of the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Earlier, according to the elections schedule announced by Azad Jammu Kashmir Legislative Assembly on the wee hours on Thursday, the nomination papers were allowed to be filed from 12.40 a.m to 12.55 a.m on Thursday.

Scrutiny of the nomination papers were held from 12.55 AM to 1.10 AM on Thursday. List of the names of the candidates whom nomination papers were accepted was displayed at 1.10 a.m on Thursday. Last date for withdrawal of the nomination papers from 1.10 AM to 1.20 a.m on Thursday. Final list of the candidates displayed at 1.20 AM Thursday. Election to the office of the Prime Minister held at 1.25 AM on Thursday.

Later while addressing the assembly session, PML-N lawmakers in the house former Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider Khan, PML (N) AJK President and former Speaker AJK Legislative Assembly Shah Ghulam Qadir, PPP AJK President MLA Ch. Yaseen, former Leader of the Opposition in the House Ch. Latif Akber of PPP, Ch. Rasheed, Deewan Chughtai and Hafiz Hamid Raza of PTI and others, congratulated Ch. Anwar ul Haq for having been elected as the Prime Minister of Azad Jammu Kashmir securing support of a thumping majority of 53-seat State Legislative Assembly by bagging 48 votes.