Opposition threatens no-confidence vote against PPP government in AJK

2026-02-19 - 08:23

MUZAFFARABAD: The joint opposition in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Legislative Assembly has threatened to table a no-confidence motion against the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) government, claiming it no longer holds a majority. Addressing a press conference at the Muzaffarabad Press Club, PML-N AJK President and Leader of the Opposition Shah Ghulam Qadir, along with former prime ministers Raja Farooq Haider and Chaudhry Anwarul Haq, said the opposition has secured a simple majority required to move a no-confidence resolution. The opposition leaders alleged that the PPP government has lost the confidence of the House and warned they would resist any attempt to derail the upcoming elections scheduled for July 2026. They urged the ruling party to “correct its attitude” or face consequences. Shah Ghulam Qadir also accused the PPP of favouritism. Raja Farooq Haider claimed that budgetary changes were being introduced without the approval of the Legislative Assembly, terming the move unconstitutional. The latest political tensions come just three months after a dramatic change in the AJK government. On November 17, 2025, then-Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq was removed from office after a no-confidence motion was successfully passed in the Legislative Assembly. During that session, 36 members voted in favour of the motion, while only two opposed it, paving the way for a new government. Subsequently, PPP leader Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore was elected as Leader of the House and became the new Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The PPP had formally submitted the no-confidence motion against Chaudhry Anwarul Haq on November 14, 2025.