PML-N nominee Barrister Iftikhar Gilani has been elected the 17th Prime Minister (PM) of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) on Friday.
He defeated Pakistan Peoples Party candidate Sardar Mukhtar Ahmed Khan Abbasi. The oath-taking ceremony will be held at the President’s House in Muzaffarabad.
Out of a total of 46 votes, 44 were cast. Barrister Iftikhar Gilani of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz secured 30 votes, while PPP candidate Sardar Mukhtar Ahmed Abbasi received 14 votes.
The Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly session for the election of the prime minister was held at 2:00 pm, although the electoral process had begun earlier in the morning. Nomination papers were received between 9:30 am and 10:30 am, while scrutiny, display of the candidates’ list and other necessary formalities were completed by noon. Voting for the election of the prime minister then took place in the House at 2:00 pm.
Before the session began, the atmosphere inside the Legislative Assembly remained politically charged. Prime ministerial nominee Barrister Iftikhar Ali Gilani individually greeted members from both the government and opposition benches and visited their seats to meet them. He also went to the seat of his political rival and PPP nominee for prime minister, Sardar Mukhtar Ahmed Khan Abbasi, shook hands with him and held a brief conversation.
Former AJK prime minister and former PML-N president Raja Farooq Haider Khan also remained the centre of attention among lawmakers. Before the session began, a large number of government and opposition members gathered around him and engaged in discussions.
Ahead of the prime ministerial election, PML-N nominee Barrister Iftikhar Gilani personally visited the residence of former prime minister Raja Farooq Haider Khan, met him and brought him to the assembly in his own vehicle.
Raja Farooq Haider later attended the assembly session and cast his vote in favour of Barrister Iftikhar Ali Gilani in the prime ministerial election.
Meanwhile, PML-N Azad Kashmir President Shah Ghulam Qadir was unable to attend the assembly session and could not cast his vote.
Who Is Barrister Iftikhar Gilani?
Barrister Iftikhar Ali Gilani was born on July 27, 1980, in Muzaffarabad. He received his early education in Islamabad, later earned a bachelor’s degree from SOAS University of London, and was called to the Bar at Lincoln’s Inn in 2005.
Barrister Iftikhar Gilani is an experienced PML-N politician in Azad Kashmir. He was elected to the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly in 2011 and 2016.
Following the 2016 elections, he was appointed Education Minister in the AJK cabinet.
In the 2026 general elections, Iftikhar Gilani contested the LA-29 Muzaffarabad-III constituency as a PML-N candidate but was defeated by Pakistan Peoples Party candidate Mukhtar Ahmed Abbasi.
He was later nominated by the PML-N for a technocrat seat in the elections for reserved seats. In the election held on August 24, Iftikhar Gilani secured 26 votes and won the seat, while PPP candidate Sahibzada Zulfiqar Ali received 12 votes.
As a result, only a few weeks after losing the general election, Iftikhar Gilani returned to the Legislative Assembly and was subsequently nominated by the PML-N for the office of prime minister.
