Shah Ghulam Qadir nominated as next AJK prime minister

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Shah Ghulam Qadir has been nominated as the next

MUZAFFARABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Shah Ghulam Qadir has been nominated as the next prime minister of AJK.

The decision was taken by PML-N President Nawaz Sharif after consultations with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz.

Party sources confirmed on Tuesday that Qadir would take oath as AJK prime minister on Thursday at 5pm at the High Court Ground in Muzaffarabad.

The nomination follows the recent AJK elections, which were held in three phases between July 27 and August 10. The PML-N emerged as the largest parliamentary party after securing 25 of the 38 directly contested seats. The Pakistan Peoples Party won 12 seats, while one member of the Awami Dast-o-Bazu joined the PML-N.

Qadir is a veteran politician with more than three decades of political experience. He has held several important parliamentary and ministerial positions in AJK.

He has served as finance, planning and development minister and also held the food ministry. He was elected speaker of the AJK Legislative Assembly twice. He currently serves as PML-N AJK president and leader of the opposition.

Qadir entered politics as a student leader and later became involved with the All-Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference. He eventually served as its secretary general during Sardar Abdul Qayyum Khan’s leadership.

His electoral career began with his election from the Kashmiri refugees constituency, Kashmir Valley-IV. He went on to win seven elections to the AJK Legislative Assembly.

Throughout his political career, Qadir has highlighted the issues of Kashmiri refugees and advocated the right to self-determination for the people of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir.

He has also represented Kashmir at international forums, including the United Nations General Assembly and the UN Human Rights Council.

Qadir was among the founding figures of the PML-N in AJK. He played a significant role in strengthening the party’s organisational structure and political presence in the region before becoming its AJK president.

During his tenure as assembly speaker, he focused on parliamentary discipline, constitutional governance and legislative oversight. As opposition leader, he continued to call for stronger democratic institutions and accountability.

Qadir is known for maintaining political contacts across different parties and is regarded as an experienced parliamentary leader. He is also fluent in Kashmiri and has maintained links with various Kashmiri political circles.

His nomination comes after the new AJK Legislative Assembly began its parliamentary term. Forty-six newly elected members took oath during the inaugural session, which was presided over by Assembly Speaker Latif Akbar.

The new 53-member assembly has a clear PML-N majority. According to the initial proceedings, 31 PML-N members and one Awami Dast-o-Bazu member took oath, while 14 PPP lawmakers were also sworn in.