MUZAFFARABAD (Kashmir English): The election for the 17th Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) is set to take place on Thursday, August 27, at the Legislative Assembly.
According to the schedule issued by the AJK Legislative Assembly Secretariat today, the polling for the AJK Prime Minister will be held at 12:30 PM on Thursday, while the oath-taking ceremony of the premier will also take place later in the evening.
As per the schedule, nomination papers will be submitted from 9:30 to 10:30 am, followed by the scrutiny of nomination papers from 10:30 to 10:45 am. The list of candidates will be displayed at 11 am.
The time for the withdrawal of nomination papers has been fixed from 11 am to 11:30 am, while the final list of candidates will be issued at 12 noon.
Later, the election for the Prime Minister post will be held at 12:30 pm. All the proceedings for the election will be completed in the Legislative Assembly Secretariat, it stated.
The elected Prime Minister will then take the oath on the same day at 5 pm at the High Court Ground in Muzaffarabad, sources said.
Earlier today, the elections for Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the PML-N-dominated Legislative Assembly were completed, with Chaudhry Tariq Farooq and Ahmed Raza Qadri securing the posts.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) candidate Chaudhry Tariq Farooq was elected Speaker with 32 votes, while Ahmed Raza Qadri was elected Deputy Speaker with 32 votes.
Following his election, Tariq Farooq became the 16th Speaker, and Ahmed Raza was elected the 15th Deputy Speaker of the House. Later, after proceedings, the newly elected Speaker adjourned the Assembly session until 12:30 PM on August 27.
Shah Ghulam nominated for PM
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Nawaz Sharif has nominated PML-N AJK President, Shah Ghulam Qadir, for the post of Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).
According to the sources, the decision was taken during an important consultative meeting chaired by Nawaz Sharif. The meeting decided to nominate Shah Ghulam Qadir as the head of the AJK government.
He is one of the senior and seasoned parliamentary leaders who has held important responsibilities in the Legislative Assembly and the government for a long time.
With a political journey spanning over three decades, Shah Ghulam Qadir has served as the Speaker twice, in 2006 and 2016, during his seven-time Legislative Assembly membership.
During his parliamentary journey, Shah Ghulam Qadir held the portfolios of various important ministries, including the Minister of Finance, Minister of Planning and Development, Minister of Food, and Minister of Information.
