AJK PM Anwarul Haq ousted as Faisal Rathore secures majority vote

MUZAFFARABAD: A no-confidence motion against Azad Jammu and Kashmir Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq succeeded as Pakistan People’s Party’s nominee Faisal Mumtaz Rathore was elected the new leader of the house in the AJK Legislative Assembly.

The session, chaired by Speaker Chaudhry Latif Akbar, saw members vote on the motion.

The motion was moved by Sardar Javed Ayub, Chaudhry Qasim Majeed, and others, with Faisal Mumtaz Rathore nominated as the alternative leader of the house.

During voting, Rathore secured 36 votes, while only two were cast against him. A simple majority of 27 votes was required for the motion to pass.

The resolution seeking a vote of no confidence against Anwarul Haq was submitted to the Assembly Secretariat on Friday afternoon. The motion carries the signatures of 25 lawmakers — 23 from the PPP and two from the PML-N.

Earlier, Prime Minister Haq entered the House with four lawmakers. He walked over to Faisal Mumtaz Rathore and exchanged greetings with him.

Rathore is likely to take oath on Tuesday and will become the 16th Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and the fourth under the current assembly.

Earlier, Anwarul Haq said it was a ‘day of liberation’ and asked why he should not celebrate it. He added that he had already decided six months ago that he would step down.

He said he had been given almost two and a half years in office. “I have reached this day through my own judgement and reasoning,” he said. He extended good wishes to those succeeding him, saying he prayed for their success.

Earlier, addressing the House, Prime Minister Anwarul Haq said that had his colleagues consulted him earlier, “perhaps there would have been no need for this motion.”

He said he had told them that if they mustered 27 members, he would resign.

Anwarul Haq said that once the count reached 27, “we waited to see who the groom would be,” noting that he held no grievances against anyone.

Earlier, Faisal Rathore resigned as Minister of AJK Local Government and Rural Development and submitted his resignation to Prime Minister Anwarul Haq.

WHO IS FAISAL RATHORE?

Faisal Mumtaz Rathore was born on April 11, 1978 in Rawalpindi. He is a prominent political leader from Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and a senior figure in the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). He belongs to one of the most influential political families in AJK.

Faisal Mumtaz Rathore is the son of Mumtaz Hussain Rathore, a major political figure who served as Senior Minister in 1975, Prime Minister of AJK in 1990, Leader of the Opposition in 1991, and Speaker of the Legislative Assembly in 1996.

On March 23, 2017 he was elected as the Secretary General of PPP AJK, and he still holds that position. He was re-elected MLA in 2021, and played an active role in the opposition. In 2023, he was appointed as the Minister for Local Government and Rural Development in the coalition government of Chaudhry Anwarul Haq.

He has also served as head of the PPP negotiation committee with the Awami Action Committee.