Nawaz Sharif 'chairs' PML-N meeting for AJK govt formation

MURREE: Former prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Nawaz Sharif is charing a consultative meeting to discuss the formation of the government in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), ARY News reported on Sunday, citing sources.

The meeting is being held in Murree.

According to sources, a decision on the AJK prime minister and the reserved seats for women is expected to be made during the meeting. A decision on the one seat reserved for overseas Kashmiris is also expected today.

For the AJK premiership, party president Shah Ghulam Qadir is considered a strong candidate. The names of Tariq Farooq and Waqar Noor are also under consideration for the position.

Candidates being considered for the women’s reserved seats include Seharish Qamar, Maryam Kashmiri, Nasira Khan, and Nisara Abbasi.

For the overseas reserved seat, the names of Ahsan Danish, Abdul Rehman Arain, Raja Wasim, and Raja Javed are reportedly under consideration.

Earlier, Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has secured 24 seats in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) elections.

In a statement, Chaudhry said all three phases of the AJK elections had been completed and PML-N had emerged with a clear lead.

He said the party would also receive three women and three other reserved seats under the formula, taking its total strength to 30 seats. The reserved seats include those for overseas Pakistanis, technocrats, and Ulema and Mashaikh.

The federal minister said the AJK Legislative Assembly session would be convened next week, where newly elected members would take oath and elections for reserved seats would be held.

He added that the elections for the speaker and prime minister of AJK would also be completed next week. Chaudhry said a stable and strong government was needed in AJK given the current circumstances.