- PPP, JUI-F to contest AJK elections via electoral alliance.
- Bilawal backs Fazl’s mediation efforts on AJK protests.
- Fazl seeks dialogue on dispute over 12 refugee seats.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said on Tuesday that his party and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) would form a coalition government in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) after the July 27 elections.
The development came after the top leaders held a meeting in Islamabad, two days after both parties formally announced an electoral alliance for the July 27 elections to the 53-member AJK Legislative Assembly and agreed to field joint candidates in selected constituencies.
The PPP chief, addressing a press conference alongside the JUI-F supremo, said that the alliance between the PPP and JUI-F in AJK was the first of its kind and expressed confidence that the two parties would jointly form the next government after the July 27 polls.
He added that similar cooperation could also be explored in Balochistan, Gilgit-Baltistan, Sindh and other regions.
Referring to the ongoing protests in the AJK, Bilawal said all stakeholders wanted the issue to be resolved and were working to create an environment conducive to addressing the crisis through peaceful means.
Bilawal said he supported Maulana Fazl’s mediation efforts and urged the government to extend its backing as well.
He said political parties often benefited from the veteran politician’s experience during difficult times.
Bilawal stressed that the upcoming AJK elections must be free, fair and peaceful, adding that while protest was a democratic right, it should remain non-violent.
It is noteworthy to mention here that the AJK government had imposed a ban on the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) on June 5 under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) after violent protests.
The ban was imposed days ahead of the banned outfit’s planned June 9 protest seeking the abolition of 12 seats in the AJK reserved for refugees from Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) who migrated to Pakistan after 1947.
Speaking at the news conference today, JUI-F chief Fazl said the protesters had approached him to play a mediation role regarding their ongoing sit-in.
Noting that Bilawal supported the initiative in parliament, Fazl said a message was also being conveyed to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, expressing hope that the government would take positive steps.
The JUI-F chief said the issue concerning 12 refugee seats in AJK should be discussed through dialogue and resolved at the negotiating table.
He also confirmed that the PPP had offered his party a role in a coalition government in Balochistan and said he would consult the JUI-F leadership before making a decision.
