By News Desk
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari spoke by telephone with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to discuss the political situation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), sources said on Sunday, as the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) moves to form the government in the territory.
According to sources, President Zardari took Prime Minister Shehbaz into confidence over the PPP’s decision and the strategy for government formation in AJK.
After the call, the prime minister tasked the PMLN committee on AJK affairs — chaired by Ahsan Iqbal and comprising Rana Sanaullah and Amir Muqam — with holding talks with the PPP. The committee has begun consultations with the PMLN’s AJK chapter, the sources added.
Also, the PPP on Sunday claimed to have secured the required majority to form a new government in AJK, asserting that it no longer needs the support of PMLN.
The development came after a series of meetings at the Zardari House, where several AJK ministers and political figures from the PTI forward bloc announced their decision to join the PPP following meetings with Faryal Talpur, President PPP Women’s Wing and In-charge Political Affairs AJK.
A delegation led by Faheem Akhtar Rabbani, Muhammad Asim Sharif, Chaudhry Muhammad Akbar, and Abdul Majid Khan joined the PPP in the presence of senior leader Chaudhry Muhammad Riaz. Later, another group including Chaudhry Yasir Sultan, Sardar Muhammad Hussain, Chaudhry Muhammad Ikhlaq, Chaudhry Arshad Hussain, and Chaudhry Muhammad Rasheed also joined the party.
Following these inductions, the PPP’s strength in the AJK Legislative Assembly has risen from 17 to 27 members, giving it the simple majority needed to form the government.
Welcoming the new members, Faryal Talpur said their inclusion would strengthen the PPP’s political presence and reaffirmed the party’s commitment to democracy, development and the Kashmir cause under the leadership of Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Asif Ali Zardari.
The PPP has shortlisted Chaudhry Yasin, Chaudhry Latif Akbar and Sardar Yaqoob for the office of Prime Minister AJK, with the final announcement expected within the next two days.
Separately, PMLN parliamentary leader and former AJK prime minister Raja Farooq Haider reiterated his party’s stance that it will sit in opposition and will not be part of any government formation in AJK.
He told the party’s parliamentary meeting that the decision to remain in opposition stands and there is no room for change.
Speaking to Geo News, PMLN AJK President Shah Ghulam Qadir admitted that supporting PM Anwar was a ‘mistake’, echoing earlier remarks by Haider.
Qadir said that time had proven their decision wrong, as PM Anwar chose to rely on individual lawmakers rather than political parties.
He reiterated that the PMLN legislators would not cast their votes in anyone’s favour, adding that any group capable of securing a majority was free to form the government.
Ahead of a key meeting between the ruling coalition’s top leadership, Qadir expressed the hope that PM Shehbaz would make his decision in line with the party workers’ sentiment.
He stressed that the premier would not pressurise the PMLN’s AJK chapter into any decision that contradicts the party’s interests.
In Islamabad, PPP leaders held separate meetings chaired by President Zardari and by PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari as the party moved to finalise its course of action, sources said on Saturday.
The session at the President’s House — attended by Bilawal, Faryal Talpur, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and Qamar Zaman Kaira — approved moving a no-confidence motion against the incumbent AJK premier, sources said. The president is expected to finalise the party’s nominee for the AJK premiership after further consultations.
Party sources confirmed that Bilawal would formally announce the government formation plan on Monday. PPP insiders said the party is considering Chaudhry Muhammad Yasin and Chaudhry Latif Akbar among the names for the AJK premiership. Chaudhry Yasin told reporters the party had taken a “final decision” to form the government and that leadership would determine the nominee.
The AJK Legislative Assembly has 52 members and a simple majority requires 27 votes. Presently, PPP holds 17 seats, PMLN nine, and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf four; the Muslim Conference and Jammu Kashmir Peoples Party each have one member.
A twenty-member forward bloc also exists inside the assembly. To reach the 27-member threshold, PPP needs additional backing; with PMLN support, its total would rise to 26 seats. As PMLN’s AJK president Shah Ghulam Qadir has announced his party will sit in opposition, the PPP has intensified contacts with forward bloc members to secure the numbers required for government formation.
Sources said the AJK premier, Chaudhry Anwarul Haq, has begun consultations amid an expected in-house change that could occur either through resignation or a no-confidence motion.
The premier is likely to make a significant decision within 48 hours, according to sources. PPP leaders said they have secured the numbers necessary to table and pass a no-confidence motion if the incumbent refuses to step down, though the party has not yet publicly demonstrated the required assembly strength.
Kaira, speaking outside the Zardari House, described the situation in AJK as “worrying for all parties” and said the party would hold further consultation with the president before making formal public announcements.
He added that while there was talk that the PMLN had decided to sit in opposition, PPP had not received a formal notification on that matter at the time.
With negotiations ongoing and the PPP leadership having authorised a no-confidence approach, party sources said important political developments were expected in the coming days. Bilawal is due to make a formal announcement on Monday on the party’s plans and the name of its chosen candidate.
The PPP has received the go-ahead to move a no-confidence motion against AJK PM Chaudhry Anwarul Haq, after his ruling coalition collapsed with 35 lawmakers publicly parting ways.
Bilawal is expected to announce the party’s nominee for the prime minister in the coming days.
The PPP, with 17 members in the 52-member assembly, has reportedly gained the backing of five members from the Barrister Sultan Group and four from the Forward Bloc, taking its strength to 26—just one short of the 27 votes needed for a simple majority. More support from women lawmakers on reserved seats is expected soon.
The PMLN, which holds nine seats, has opted to sit in opposition, though PPP leaders are still trying to secure its cooperation. Senior PPP figures are expected to meet Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and AJK President Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry to finalise strategy.
Political observers say Anwarul Haq still has the constitutional option to dissolve the assembly before the motion is tabled. However, with shifting alliances and the PPP nearing majority strength, a change in government appears imminent in the coming days.
