ISLAMABAD – Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senior leaders have met in Muzaffarabad in an effort to ease political tensions triggered by allegations of irregularities in the ongoing Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) elections.
The meeting followed several days of public accusations and heated exchanges between the two coalition partners after the Mirpur election results, with the PPP alleging irregularities in parts of the electoral process.
According to sources, the dialogue was initiated after consultations at the federal level to prevent the dispute from affecting cooperation between the two parties in the coalition government.
The PPP delegation comprised Qamar Zaman Kaira, Nadeem Afzal Chan, AJK Prime Minister Faisal Rathore and Nayyar Bukhari, while the PML-N was represented by Rana Sanaullah and Amir Muqam.
During the meeting, both sides discussed concerns over statements made during the election campaign and following the announcement of the Mirpur results. PML-N leaders asked the PPP to substantiate its allegations of organized election rigging with evidence.
PPP representatives responded that their objections were confined to four constituencies—LA-5, LA-9, LA-11 and LA-12—where they alleged serious electoral irregularities had occurred.
PML-N leaders maintained that limiting the objections to four constituencies effectively meant the PPP had accepted the results in the remaining nine seats, where PML-N secured five seats and the PPP won four.
Sources said both parties agreed that political tensions should not be allowed to escalate further or undermine the remaining phases of the AJK elections.
The meeting also reviewed security arrangements for polling in the remaining constituencies, particularly in Muzaffarabad.
Both parties agreed that no weapons should be permitted inside or around polling stations to help ensure a peaceful, orderly and transparent voting process.
