Internal rift in PML-N G-B deepens over party presidentship

GILGIT: Internal strife within the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) in Gilgit-Baltistan has escalated, as over 20 senior party members have approached the Gilgit-Baltistan Election Commission to challenge former chief minister Hafiz Hafeezur Rehman’s authority to serve as the party’s regional president.

A formal application was submitted by prominent party figures, including former ministers Akbar Taban and Engineer Muhammad Anwar, former deputy speaker Jaffar Ullah Khan, former member of the Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) Assembly Rani Atiqa Ghazanfer, and 19 other senior party members.

The group has contested the legitimacy of Hafeezur Rehman’s claim to the party leadership in the region, pointing out that no formal intra-party elections have been conducted to elect new office-bearers.

The dispute stems from a notice (No. ELC-1(44)/2021) issued by the Gilgit-Baltistan Election Commission Secretariat, on September 18, 2024, which directed the respondent, Hafeezur Rehman, to submit details of the intra-party elections, along with the relevant documents pertaining to the office-bearers of the PML-N in the region. However, the petitioners have challenged the very notice issued to Hafeezur Rehman, arguing that no such elections have taken place and he was not the party president.

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In their application, the petitioners highlighted that the central leadership of PML-N, including party President Nawaz Sharif and Chief Organizer Maryam Nawaz Sharif, were fully aware of the internal disputes within the PML-N GB chapter. During a workers’ convention held on September 16, 2023 in Islamabad, both leaders verbally pledged to reorganise the party structure and conduct intra-party elections in Gilgit-Baltistan at the earliest.

The petition said that the PML-N’s leadership vacuum in Gilgit-Baltistan has persisted since 2020, and any claim by an individual to hold the party presidency without a formal election is illegitimate. The applicants accused Hafeezur Rehman of creating a faction within the party and unlawfully declaring himself as the party’s regional president.

The petitioners emphasised that without a formal notification from the central leadership, no individual can legally assume the role of party president in Gilgit-Baltistan. They urged the G-B Election Commission to annul the impugned notice and prevent Hafeezur Rehman from declaring himself as the PML-N’s regional head.

The petitioners, identifying themselves as pioneers of the PML-N in Gilgit-Baltistan, stressed their dedication to the party and their ongoing efforts to maintain its presence in the region while awaiting formal elections. They called upon the G-B Election Commission to issue a notice to the PML-N central leadership, asking them to expedite the intra-party election process.

While speaking to HUM News English, former deputy speaker Jaffar Ullah Khan blamed Hafeezur Rehman for disrupting the party’s unity and creating factions within its ranks. “Hafeezur Rehman destroyed the party,” he stated, adding that they have the support of key party stalwarts, including former ministers and ticket holders, despite Hafeezur Rehman’s claim to the presidency.

Khan further alleged that Hafeezur Rehman has held the party’s Gilgit-Baltistan presidentship for over two decades without conducting the intra-party elections, and he has no formal notification from the central leadership validating his position.

“Hafeez has the backing of a few immature social media users, though they are respected by us,” Khan noted, emphasizing that their main issue lies with the presidency, which they claim Rehman is unlawfully holding.

When contacted, Hafeezur Rehman dismissed the accusations and denied the existence of any internal division within the party. “The party is the same. There is no forward bloc within the party. They don’t even belong to the PML-N. Some are from the PTI, some from thePPP, and some have been expelled from the party,” Rehman said.

He characterized the current situation as a necessary “cleaning” of the party, which he compared to similar purges that occurred during the eras of General (retd) Pervez Musharraf and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government. “It’s not an issue; it’s just the party cleaning itself of unnecessary elements,” he added, downplaying the severity of the current conflict.