Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Barrister Iftikhar Gilani has been elected the 17th Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir after securing 30 votes in the Legislative Assembly. He subsequently took oath of office.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) candidate Sardar Mukhtar Khan received 14 votes in the election.
The election was held in the AJK Legislative Assembly, where the PML-N currently has 32 members, while elections on seven seats are yet to be completed.
Addressing the assembly for the first time after his election, Prime Minister Gilani said Pakistan and Kashmir were “incomplete without each other,” and pledged to bring development and reforms to the region along the lines of those introduced by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz.
Gilani thanked Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz for their support. He said the Kashmir issue was not merely a dispute over a piece of land but concerned the right of the Kashmiri people to self-determination under United Nations resolutions.
He condemned India’s August 5, 2019 measures and what he described as ongoing human rights violations against Kashmiris.
The newly elected premier also praised the sacrifices of the Pakistan armed forces under Field Marshal Asim Munir, saying they had contributed to an environment in which Kashmiris could live peacefully.
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Gilani outlined an agenda focused on governance, merit, digitalisation and reforms in education and healthcare. He said his government would ensure merit-based recruitment and introduce a third-party recruitment mechanism on the model of the National Testing Service (NTS).
“Every person cannot be provided a government job,” he said, stressing the need for reforms in the public sector and a shift towards a digital economy.
Acknowledging connectivity challenges in Azad Kashmir, Gilani said he was aware of the lack of internet access in parts of the region, but expressed confidence that conditions would gradually improve.
He also announced plans to reform the health and education sectors and launch a citizen portal to facilitate the registration of public complaints.
“Modern technology and a bright future for Kashmir are our next destination,” he said.
Gilani has previously served as AJK education minister and has remained active in the region’s politics for more than a decade. He was first elected to the AJK Legislative Assembly in 2011.
In the current assembly, he entered the house on a PML-N ticket through a technocrat seat.
His nomination for the premiership was finalised at a key consultation meeting attended by PML-N leaders Rana Sanaullah, Khawaja Saad Rafique, Shah Ghulam Qadir and Raja Farooq Haider. Newly elected AJK Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Tariq Farooq and Deputy Speaker Ahmed Raza Qadri, along with other senior party leaders, also participated in the deliberations and endorsed Gilani’s nomination by consensus.
