MUZAFFARABAD: The no-confidence motion against Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq was successfully passed on Monday, ending his tenure following a decisive vote in the Legislative Assembly.
During the session, lawmakers cast their votes through a show of hands. According to the Assembly’s count, 36 members voted in favour of the motion, while only 2 opposed it, clearing the way for a change in the AJK government.
Following the vote, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore was elected as the new Leader of the House.
AJK premier to face no-confidence move today
He secured 36 votes, formally becoming the next Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
The transition marks a significant shift in the political landscape of AJK, with the Assembly now set to move forward under Rathore’s leadership.
The session was chaired by Speaker Chaudhry Latif. Before the voting, outgoing Prime Minister Anwarul Haq delivered a lengthy speech, defending his tenure and responding to the allegations tied to the no-confidence move.
He walked out of the assembly along with five colleagues after the vote.
Faisal Mumtaz Rathore, born April 11, 1978, in Rawalpindi, belongs to one of Azad Kashmir’s oldest political families and is the son of former AJK Prime Minister Mumtaz Hussain Rathore.
His mother, Begum Farhat Rathore, was also a member of the Legislative Assembly and served as the PPP Women’s Wing President.
The Rathore family is considered among the founding pillars of the PPP in Azad Kashmir.
Ahead of the no-confidence session, Rathore resigned from his ministerial post, stating that he wished to contest the prime ministerial slot with full transparency. He said he would continue his duties as an MLA regardless of the result.
In his address before the vote, Prime Minister Anwarul Haq questioned why he alone was being blamed for the deterioration in governance.
“Is it possible that only one person is responsible for the destruction of the constitution and administrative structure? Are my cabinet members not responsible?” he asked, emphasising that he wanted his remarks “to remain on record.”
He said the House had once urged him to dissolve the assembly by February 15, adding that if he had agreed, someone could have removed him forcefully. “I thank my cabinet who signed my freedom certificate,” he said with a smile.
Anwarul Haq claimed he was advised to travel in an armoured vehicle amid protests but chose not to, saying he was a political worker who preferred being among his people. He warned that had violence erupted during the Action Committee movement, he would have faced severe consequences.
He recounted how he challenged Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the assembly’s floor, saying his criticism was misrepresented as an attack on India itself.
“This political system will survive only when our borders are secure,” he said, stressing that Pakistan’s armed forces were the “guarantee of our existence.”
Anwarul Haq said his views were labelled as “ideological distortions” in the no-confidence motion, but insisted he had received full cooperation from the bureaucracy and support from journalists, lawyers, and civil society. He added that he held no personal grudges and even expressed support for Rathore’s candidacy.
“If Faisal Mumtaz Rathore was elected, I would have voted for him,” he said.
“My best wishes are with him.”
After the speech, he left the House accompanied by five assembly members.
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