MUZAFFARABAD: PML-N’s Rana Sanaullah announced on Monday that Sajid Iqbal Abbasi — who won the LA-14 seat on Jammu Kashmir Awami Dast-o-Bazu Party’s ticket in recent elections in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) — had allied with his party.
Addressing a press conference at AJK Council Secratariat in the federal capital, the PM’s adviser on political affairs reiterated that the PML-N was set to form the government in AJK as it had secured 25 seats in the elections.
He claimed that the PML-N’s tally would rise to around 33 after elections to the reserved seats, enabling it to secure a two-thirds majority in the 53-member assembly.
At the press conference, Sanaullah was accompanied by Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, PML-N AJK President Shah Ghulam Qadir, Secretary General Chaudhry Tariq Farooq and other leaders.
The elections in AJK were held in phases, with the Election Commission citing security concerns. The PML-N had already bagged 25 seats in the elections before Abbasi’s alliance with the party. The party’s main contender, the PPP, won only 12 constituencies and has alleged rigging and electoral malpractices.
Meanwhile, elections for seven seats in AJK are yet to be held due to the security situation.
Sanaullah said the party would fulfil its election promises and ensure that the AJK Assembly exercised its full powers.
He said maintaining law and order would be the government’s foremost priority, adding that development work would be undertaken in AJK on the pattern of Punjab.
The PML-N leader also welcomed Abbasi’s decision, who defeated Muslim Conference president and former prime minister Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan in LA-14 (Bagh West), to join hands with the PML-N.
Sanaullah said Abbasi had been elected with a strong mandate and that he had personally requested his support for the PML-N’s efforts to develop AJK.
“Sajid Iqbal Abbasi has become part of the PML-N team for the development and progress of AJK,” he said, adding that the party was grateful to him for his decision.
Sanaullah said the PML-N had accepted the people’s verdict in LA-14 and secured a clear lead across AJK.
Abbasi also spoke at the press conference. Formally announcing an alliance between his party and the PML-N in AJK, he thanked the PML-N leadership for reposing confidence in him and the people of his constituency for giving him what he described as the biggest mandate in AJK’s history.
Sanaullah also mentioned the ongoing sit-ins in AJK. He said the participants were “our brothers” and had the right to stage peaceful protests, adding that the government would take steps to address the region’s underdevelopment.
“Peaceful protest is everyone’s right,” he said.
Sanaullah claimed that 99 per cent of those participating in the sit-ins were patriotic, while one to 1.5pc might be associated with “provocative elements”.
He alleged that the proscribed Action Committee had wanted the elections to be halted, adding that the government had wanted all stakeholders to “walk shoulder to shoulder” with it.
“Kashmiris are as much owners of Pakistan as Pakistanis,” he said.
PML-N unveils road map for AJK’s development
AJK PML-N Secretary General and MLA-elect Chaudhry Tariq Farooq on Monday unveiled a roadmap for the incoming PML-N government, with a focus on governance, institutional reforms, youth employment and public welfare, calling for an end to post-election bitterness in AJK.
In a statement, Farooq called upon political parties, leaders, workers and voters to put aside their differences and work together now that the electoral process in AJK had largely been completed.
He urged political stakeholders to use constitutional and legal forums rather than allowing electoral differences to turn into prolonged political confrontation.
“Elections are an essential part of democracy; differences of opinion and competition are natural, but after the elections, we have to move forward together,” he said.
Farooq said polling was yet to be held in seven constituencies of Poonch Division because of the law and order situation and other “unavoidable reasons”.
He expressed confidence that elections in the remaining constituencies would be held in accordance with the Constitution and law once the situation returned to normal.
Describing Poonch as an important chapter in the region’s history, freedom movement and association with Pakistan, he said its people had rendered “unforgettable” sacrifices in the Kashmir freedom movement as well as Pakistan’s defence and national causes.
He said the real test for political parties was not merely forming a government but governing effectively.
“The government is not of any one party, group, region or voter, but of the entire people of Azad Jammu and Kashmir,” he said, stressing that its objective should be to provide relief, justice, employment, education, healthcare and better public services.
Farooq’s proposed priorities for the incoming government included improving governance, introducing institutional reforms, making the development system more effective and addressing the problems confronting young people.
He termed youth unemployment and the resulting frustration among them the biggest challenge facing the region, and called for urgent attention to universities, colleges, educational institutions, hospitals and other public-sector institutions.
“We must examine why our youth are disillusioned, why our institutions are failing to meet public expectations, and how these problems can be addressed through immediate and practical solutions,” he said.
The PML-N leader said objections to election results should be pursued through the mechanisms provided by the Constitution and law, including election tribunals.
He urged all stakeholders to trust constitutional and legal institutions and seek redress through the prescribed forums.
Farooq said the PML-N was going to form a “people-oriented, democratic and responsible government” in accordance with the vision and directions of Nawaz.
He also called for greater coordination among the AJK government, political parties and the federal government on the Kashmir issue.
Farooq urged political leaders and workers to turn their differences into “democratic strength” and remain united on what he termed the fundamental interests of the state, its people, Pakistan and the Kashmir freedom movement.
“Let us not turn political differences into hostility, let us not transform electoral competition into permanent confrontation,” he said.
He also called for strengthening national unity and creating a peaceful, stable and developed environment in AJK.
“Whatever had to happen during the elections has happened,” he said, urging stakeholders to move beyond past bitterness and focus on building the future.
Farooq said administrative divisions and districts should not become barriers between the people, stressing that the prosperity, peace, development and dignity of residents of Poonch, Muzaffarabad, Mirpur and other regions were interconnected.
“The time has come for us to move beyond politics, promote unity, improve governance, give hope to our youth and provide relief to the people,” he said.
