Iftikhar Gilani elected Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir, takes oath of office
Pakistan Muslim League (N) leader Barrister Iftikhar Ali Gilani has taken oath of office after being elected Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Iftikhar Gilani won the election of Leader of the House by securing 30 votes, while his opponent, PPP candidate Mukhtar Abbasi, got 14 votes.
Acting President of Azad Kashmir Chaudhry Tariq Farooq, administered the oath to the newly elected Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir Iftikhar Gilani.

Speaking after the oath-taking, the newly elected Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir Iftikhar Gilani said that he thanked the party leadership for trusting him. He said that employment will be ensured for the young generation and we all have to work together to make Azad Kashmir an example.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also congratulated Barrister Iftikhar Gilani on being elected Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and said that the continuation of the democratic process in Azad Jammu and Kashmir is welcome.

The Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly met on Friday under the chairmanship of Speaker Chaudhry Tariq Farooq, in which the process of electing the leader of the house was completed.

The Muslim League (N) had nominated Barrister Iftikhar Gilani for the post of Prime Minister, while the PPP had nominated Sardar Mukhtar Abbasi as its candidate. After the completion of the polling process, the Speaker announced that Barrister Iftikhar Gilani had been elected as the leader of the house.

Any candidate needed 27 votes to win the election. During the voting, Iftikhar Gilani got 3 more votes than the required number and was elected the 17th Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

Iftikhar Gilani has become a part of the Azad Kashmir Legislative Assembly on the technocrat seat from the PML-N. He has played an active role in the politics of Azad Kashmir before.

He was also elected as a member of the Azad Kashmir Legislative Assembly in 2011 and 2016 and was also the Minister of Education during the previous provincial cabinet of the PML-N and the Prime Ministership of Raja Farooq Haider.

Earlier, in the general elections, he was the PML-N candidate from LA-29 constituency of Muzaffarabad, but he was defeated by Mukhtar Abbasi of the PPP in the elections. Mukhtar Abbasi got 20,045 votes while Barrister Iftikhar Gilani got 16,507 votes.

The top leadership of the PML-N had decided to nominate Iftikhar Gilani as the Prime Ministerial candidate in a meeting held in Islamabad under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Later, Mian Nawaz Sharif also ratified this decision, however, differences within the PML-N also came to light over his nomination.

PML-N Azad Kashmir President Shah Ghulam Qadir and former Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider had expressed reservations over Iftikhar Gilani’s nomination and decided not to vote for him.

In the voting held on Friday, 44 members cast their votes, including former Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider. However, PML-N MLA Shah Ghulam Qadir did not reach the house to cast his vote, while PPP’s Bazal Ali Naqvi also did not cast his vote.

The total number of seats in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly is 53, but due to the non-election of seven seats in Poonch and Sidhnoti districts, the number of members in the house is currently 46. The PML-N has the support of 32 members in the assembly, including its allies, while the PPP has 14 members.