ISLAMABAD (Kashmir English): Former Chief Justice of the High Court of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Justice Sadaqat Hussain Raja, has been appointed as the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of Azad Kashmir, sources said.
As per details, the appointment was approved by the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the advice of the Azad Kashmir government.
Earlier, the government had sent a panel of four names to the Prime Minister and the Chairman Kashmir Council for the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner.
The panel included former Chief Justice of AJK High Court, Justice Mustafa Mughal, former Judge of the High Court, Azhar Saleem Babar, Sadaqat Hussain Raja, and former bureaucrat Farhat Ali Mir.
The position of the CEC in the state was vacant since the tenure of the last commissioner was completed on January 13 this year, despite that general elections are due in June or July next year.
According to Article 50 of the Constitution of Azad Kashmir, the state’s Prime Minister, after consulting the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, finalises the names of potential candidates and sends them to the Chairman of the Kashmir Council, who also holds the position of the Prime Minister of Pakistan.
As per the constitution, the Chairman of the Council selects one of the proposed names and sends it to the President of Azad Kashmir for appointment. The President then appoints the selected individual as the Chief Election Commissioner.
