Barrister Gilani elected 17th AJK PM

Mirpur, Pakistan saw the election of Barrister Iftikhar Hussain Gilani as the 17th Prime Minister of the Azad Government of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday. Gilani, a nominee of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), defeated his sole rival, Mukhtar Abbasi of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), who garnered 14 votes. This marks the 17th instance of a parliamentary prime minister being elected in the AJK since the introduction of the parliamentary system in 1975.

Gilani was nominated by PML-N President and former Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on Thursday, followed by his nomination papers being filed during a special session of the newly elected AJK Legislative Assembly in Muzaffarabad, chaired by Speaker Chaudhry Tariq Farooq. Upon his nomination, Gilani, who had previously secured a seat on the 53-member AJK Legislative Assembly on a technocrat ticket on August 24, proceeded to take the oath of office at the President House, administered by Acting President of AJK Chaudhry Tariq Farooq.

The oath ceremony was attended by senior government figures, political personalities, lawmakers, party workers, and representatives from various civil society sectors. Notably, PPP's Mukhtar Abbasi, who had previously defeated Gilani in the 2026 AJK general elections, was absent from the special session, reportedly due to his exclusion from the position.

With Gilani's election, the number of premiership terms in the parliamentary system in AJK has reached 17 since 1975, with several former prime ministers serving multiple terms, including Sikandar Hayat Khan, Attique Ahmed Khan, and Farooq Haider Khan, who each served two terms. Gilani expressed gratitude towards Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif, and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, as well as party leaders and supporters for their support in his nomination.

He emphasized the collective efforts required to transform Azad Kashmir into a model of development and prosperity, stating that his government would rely on the support of all Legislative Assembly members to achieve its objectives.