MUZAFFARABAD – Azad Jammu and Kashmir witnessed a stunning shift in power as Faisal Mumtaz Rathore became 16th Prime Minister of the region, after a thunderous no-confidence vote shook the Legislative Assembly.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)-backed no-confidence move steamrolled through the assembly, grabbing 36 votes out of 38 present members. The landslide made Rathore fourth premier under the current assembly, marking a dramatic turning point in AJK politics.
Former PM Chaudhry Anwar-ul-Haq was ousted as he defiantly refused to step down. This bold stance triggered the PPP to unleash the long-anticipated no-confidence move.one that had already received the green light from President Asif Ali Zardari weeks earlier.
PPP showed dramatic show of strength on October 26, hosting power-packed dinner at Sindh House, Islamabad, attended by 27 lawmakers. The same day turned into a political earthquake when ten ministers from the PTI forward bloc met senior PPP leader Faryal Talpur, and officially jumped ship to the PPP.
This bold defection delivered PPP a simple majority, turning tables and isolating Anwar-ul-Haq’s camp.
After defections and political realignments, once-dominant Anwar-ul-Haq group crumbled to just 7 remaining members. PTI retained only five seats, while the Muslim Conference and Jammu Kashmir Peoples Party each held one seat.
