MUZAFFARABAD:
Faisal Mumtaz Rathore of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) was on Monday elected the 16th Chief Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), after Chaudhry Anwarul Haq was removed through a no-confidence motion in the state’s Legislative Assembly.
The PPP ensured the victory of its candidate with the support of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). Rathore received 36 votes in the 53-member assembly, where only 44 legislators were present.
The AJKLA session began at 3 pm under the chairmanship of President Chaudhry Latif Akbar. On the motion of Justice Minister Abdul Waheed, the rules were suspended to allow PPP lawmaker Qasim Majeed to move the no-confidence motion against Haq.
After a brief debate, President Akbar called for a vote. A total of 36 members, including eight from the PML-N, raised their hands in support of the motion. Two Pakistani legislators from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Khawaja Farooq Ahmad and Abdul Qayyum Niazi, opposed it.
Ousted Prime Minister Haq, after delivering a short speech, walked out of the session along with five of his colleagues, including Mir Akbar, Azhar Sadiq, Sabiha Siddique and Imtiaz Begum.
Muslim Conference (MC) president Sardar Attique Ahmad did not participate in the voting, while Jammu and Kashmir People’s Party (JKPPP) members Hassan Ibrahim, Ansar Abdali and Muhammad Iqbal were among those absent.
In his maiden speech after being elected prime minister, Rathore said development, progress and political stability in AJK would be the top priorities of his government. He thanked President Asif Zardari, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, Faryal Talpur and Chaudhry Riaz and said he would endeavor to honor the trust reposed in him by the party leadership.
He also expressed his gratitude to the establishment and leadership of the PML-N, as well as his mother and the people of his constituency, who he said had played a vital role in his political journey to the premiership.
Rathore said his election had ended political deadlock in AJK and re-established a single-party government. “I know that this power is a bed of thorns, not roses,” he commented. “But with the support of the people, we can turn this bed of thorns into a bed of roses.”
He announced that he would soon make public the details of his bank accounts and properties. Declaring that his administration will be public-oriented and PPP-led, he promised that within eight to nine months “we will act in a way that ensures victory in the next elections.”
Rathore also referred to the recent protests led by the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), acknowledging that negotiations had taken place with the committee. “The committee is a reality that must be recognized,” he told the assembly.
Describing the planned reforms, he said the JAAC had its own concerns, but added that he personally supported voting rights and reserving seats for Kashmiri refugees settled in Pakistan. He announced recruitment through third-party testing and a new transportation policy, ordering that all surplus government vehicles be deposited in the transportation pool until a policy is finalized.
He promised equal employment opportunities for women; judicial reforms; and finalizing agreements with the government of Pakistan on hydropower projects in AJK.
Rathore announced regularization of grade 1 government employees along with an additional month’s salary. He reiterated his support to the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), expressing hope that their struggle would soon be successful.
Adopting a strict tone towards bureaucracy, Rathore said secretaries would be allowed only one official vehicle and had to return all others. He said the number of government secretaries would be limited to 20 and all special secretary posts would be abolished. Officials below BPS-18 would no longer be allowed official vehicles, he added.
He also announced concessions for women in public sector recruitment and a 60-day remission of prisoners’ sentences.
Earlier, PML-N president Shah Ghulam Qadir said his party had voted for the PPP only to oust the Chaudhry Anwarul Haq government. He clarified that the PML-N would remain in opposition, welcome the new government’s positive measures, but firmly resist any attempts to undermine public rights or victimize government employees.
“We have no intention of toppling your six-month-old government,” he said, urging Prime Minister Rathore to immediately appoint AJK’s chief election commissioner.
