A day after his own swearing-in, newly-elected Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Prime Minister Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore inaugurated his cabinet on Wednesday. Eighteen legislators from the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) faction took the oath of office in a significant expansion of the regional government.
The oath-taking ceremony was held at Aiwan-i-Sadr in Muzaffarabad. The oath was administered by AJK Legislative Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Latif Akbar, who was fulfilling the role of acting president. The sitting President, Barrister Sultan Mahmood, was unable to attend the ceremony due to reported health issues.
The event was well-attended, with PM Rathore, former AJK Premiers Sardar Tanveer Ilyas and Haji Yaqoob Khan, senior civil servants, and a large crowd of PPP supporters present to witness the formation of the new government.
The eighteen new ministers represent a political realignment within the assembly. While the first eight ministers named were elected on the PPP ticket in 2021, the remaining ten had contested the previous general elections on the PTI ticket before recently crossing the aisle to join the PPP.
Nabila Ayub Khan, who was elected on a reserved seat, stands as the only female minister in the new cabinet. Notably, no member elected on the refugee seats has been inducted into the ministry. Though portfolios for the cabinet were not immediately announced, a subsequent notification designated Mian Abdul Waheed as the most senior minister.
In addition to the cabinet, two advisers to the government were officially appointed. The notification was read by the secretary of services and general administration. The appointed advisers are Sardar Ahmad Saghir and Sardar Fahad Yaqoob, the latter being the son of former AJK premier Haji Yaqoob Khan.
Saghir’s mother, MLA Shahida Saghir, was also elected on a PTI ticket but recently defected to the PPP. Although the AJK Constitution legitimizes the appointment of advisers, it remains silent on the necessity of an oath. Nevertheless, PM Rathore administered an oath to both new advisers.
The formation of the new cabinet follows a period of intense political volatility. Rathore was sworn in on Tuesday, one day after Chaudhry Anwarul Haq was ousted via a vote of no-confidence. Rathore is now the fourth Prime Minister to be elected in AJK in as many years, underscoring the dynamic and fluid nature of the region’s politics.
