AJK Prime Minister Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan has formed a new 19 members Cabinet within hours after dissolving it amid rumours that six ministers in forward block have been planning a vote of no confidence against him.
AJK Prime Minister has retained all the members of dissolved Cabinet except those six ministers including Colonel Naseem (Retd), Chaudhry Aziz, Haji Yaqoob, Noureen Arif, Sardar Naeem and Majid Khan, who had formed a forward bloc against Sardar Attique Ahmed.
The new Cabinet members included Malik Muhammad Nawaz Minister for Housing and Roads, Chaudhry Mohammad Yusuf Minister for Trade and Commerce, Raja Nasser Ahmed Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Abdhur Rashid Abbasi Minister for Law and Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Hafiz Muhammad Hamid Raza Minister for Zakat, Dr Najib Naqi Minister for Heath, Syed Ghulam Murta Gilani Minister for Agriculture and City Development, Muhammad Shafiq Jiral Minister for Forestry, Muhammad Akbar Ibrahium Minister for Political Affairs and Institutional development, Sardar Abdul Qayyum Nizai Minister for Food, Ali Shan Soni Minister for Housing and Physical Planning, Chaudhry Ruksar Ahmed Minister for Power, Major Musif Dad (Retd) Minister for Education, Muhammad Sadiq Batli Minister for Development, Sardar Naeem Khan Minister for Revenue.
Advisors included Raja Yasin, Nahid Tariq, Chaudhry Ismail, Chaudhry Tariq Farooq and Begum Shamim Malik. Earlier during the day, AJK Prime Minister dissolved the Cabinet by exercising powers assigned to him by 1974 Act's article 14, sub-article 3. The Muslim Conference (MC) after June 2006 elections had formed the government with Prime Minister Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan but he developed serious differences with some of his Ministers recently. These ministers have formed a forward block to overthrow the Prime Minister Attique.
This had led to a conflict between the Prime Minister and Cabinet, which seriously affected the working of the government with Prime Minister and Ministers locking horns. These six Ministers as well as Speaker Legislative Assembly and a member within the ruling MC even refused to attend a Cabinet meeting recently. The forward block criticised the way Prime Minister was taking decisions and were even planning to move a vote of no confidence against him. This tension between forward block and Prime Minister has compelled Sardar Attique to dismiss 26 members cabinet that included 19 Ministers and 7 advisors. A possibility of a coalition government also exists with induction of Pakistan People's Party and Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Ministers as well in the new Cabinet that would take oath within 48 hours. An expected meeting between AJK Prime Minister and President Asif Ali Zardari might come up with the coalition government in Azad Kashmir as well.
The MC forward block is also said to have been holding negotiation with Pakistan People's Party who had constituted a committee headed by Minister for Labour and Manpower Khurshid Shah. Political analysts see a coalition government in AJK or a vote of no confidence against the incumbent Prime Minister.