The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has secured six of the eight reserved seats in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Legislative Assembly, further strengthening its position in the House. The PML-N won three seats reserved for women, along with one seat each for overseas Kashmiris, technocrats and religious scholars. The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) secured the remaining two women’s reserved seats.
The PML-N candidates Maryam Zaman, Maryam Idrees, and Sehrish Qamar won the reserved seats for women. Abdul Rehman Arain won the seat reserved for overseas Kashmiris, while Syed Iftikhar Ali Gilani won the seat reserved for technocrats. Maulana Mazhar Saeed won the seat reserved for religious scholars.
The PML-N’s Riffat Abid and the PPP’s Zubia Khurshid received five votes each. Zubia Khurshid subsequently won the seat through a draw. Earlier, Farzana Yaqoob had also won a reserved seat for the PPP. PML-N leader Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif also interviewed female candidates in Murree.
The PML-N emerged as the largest parliamentary party in the recent AJK general elections, winning 25 of the 45 directly elected seats. After securing six additional reserved seats, the PML-N became the largest party in the Legislative Assembly with 31 members, while the PPP came second with 14 seats. Following the results of the reserved seats, the PML-N’s position in the House became even stronger. With the support of Awami League MLA Sajid Abbasi, the number of PML-N-backed members in the Assembly increased to 32.
46 members sworn in as AJK Legislative Assembly completes formation
Later, the newly elected members took the oath following the election of the reserved seats in the AJK Legislative Assembly. Elections were held for eight reserved seats in the AJK Legislative Assembly. AJK Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Latif Akbar administered the oath to the new members.
Zubia Khurshid of the PPP and PML-N candidate Riffat Abid received five votes each. Following a tie, Zubia Khurshid was declared the winner through a draw. PML-N’s Pir Mazhar Saeed Shah won the seat reserved for Ulema and Mashaikh, while Barrister Iftikhar Gilani was declared successful on the technocrat seat. Abdul Rehman Arain of the PML-N won the seat reserved for overseas Kashmiris.
Following the reserved-seat elections, the PML-N secured a total of 31 seats in the AJK Legislative Assembly, while the PPP has 14 seats. With the support of an Awami League MLA, who joined the PML-N alliance, the party’s strength in the Assembly increased to 32. After the completion of the reserved-seat elections, the newly elected members took the oath.