Rana Sanaullah says his party will only support no-confidence motions but will not be part of the new government
The coalition partners in the federal government, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan Peoples Party, have decided to move a no-confidence motion against Azad Jammu and Kashmir Prime Minister Anwarul Haq.
The announcement was made by senior PML-N and PPP leaders Rana Sanaullah, Ahsan Iqbal, Qamar Zaman Kaira and Raja Pervez Ashraf after a meeting held at the Presidential Palace in Islamabad. They said both parties had reached a consensus that the AJK government had failed to deliver, making a change in leadership through a no-confidence motion “inevitable.”
Kaira revealed that while his party had invited the PML-N to join the government, the latter declined the offer. But the PML-N agreed to support the move to remove Anwarul Haq. Sanaullah said that the PML-N will only join the PPP in removing the AJK premier through no-confidence motion but will not be part of the new government.
Read also: PPP secures simple majority to form government in AJK
The development follows a recent meeting between PPP Women’s Wing President Faryal Talpur and members of the PTI forward bloc in the AJK Legislative Assembly. About 10 PTI members, who were also ministers in Anwarul Haq’s cabinet, met Talpur and announced their decision to join the PPP.
With the support of these 10 legislators, the PPP has reportedly secured a simple majority of 27 members in the 53-member assembly. Those who met Talpur included Chaudhry Rasheed, Yasir Sultan, Chaudhry Arshad, Chaudhry Ikhlaq, Sardar Muhammad Hussain, Majid Khan, Asim Sharif Butt, Akbar Ibrahim and Faheem Rabbani.
To consolidate his position, Talpur hosted a grand dinner at Sindh House in Islamabad, attended by PPP parliamentary members, representatives of refugee circles and members of the Barrister Sultan group.
Party insiders claim that the PPP is now getting the support of over 30 assembly members, including five from the Barrister Sultan group and five from refugee seats, while the support of two members is being kept confidential.
Although the PPP had already achieved a majority, it initially hesitated to advance the proposal independently. Subsequently, the party reached out to the PML-N, which showed initial reluctance but later agreed to support the move against the AJK premier.
Earlier, rumors of Prime Minister Anwarul Haq’s ouster had surfaced amid political unrest in AJK. However, the Federal Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Dr. Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, these reports and said that there was no truth in the allegations of the AJK premier’s resignation or dismissal. He had clarified that no such decision or discussion was under consideration at the federal level.
