MUZAFFARABAD — Dr Najeeb Naqi Khan has been elected as the 25th President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), bringing an end to months of uncertainty over the region’s vacant top constitutional office.
AJK Legislative Assembly held a presidential election on Thursday, with Dr Najeeb Naqi representing ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). The election remained pending since January following the death of former president Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry.
Dr Naqi, a senior PML-N politician from Palandri in Sudhnoti district, has long political career in Kashmir. He has been elected to the Legislative Assembly multiple times and has held several important ministerial portfolios.
His political experience includes serving as health minister from 2006 to 2011, while during the PML-N government between 2016 and 2021, he again served in the AJK cabinet, including as health and finance minister.
The presidential contest had pitted Dr Naqi against senior Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Chaudhry Latif Akbar, a former speaker of the AJK Legislative Assembly who had also served as acting president following the vacancy.
Dr Naqi entered race as PML-N’s nominee after the party’s leadership formally selected him for the constitutional post. His nomination was proposed by former AJK prime minister Raja Farooq Haider and seconded by Prime Minister Iftikhar Gillani, according to election documents reported earlier this week.
PML-N entered the election with a clear numerical advantage in the 46-member House. The party had 31 lawmakers, compared with 14 belonging to the PPP, excluding the speaker. Under the AJK Constitution, the president is elected by a majority of the assembly’s total membership.
The presidential election comes after an unusually prolonged vacancy. AJK went through a period of political uncertainty, followed by general elections and continuing unrest in parts of the region.
The newly elected president now assumes office at time when AJK is dealing with significant political and governance challenges. Seven seats in the Legislative Assembly remain vacant after polling in parts of Poonch division was postponed amid security concerns.
