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The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) chapters of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) have formally entered into an electoral alliance ahead of the July 27 elections for the 53-member AJK Legislative Assembly, agreeing to field joint candidates in select constituencies.
The alliance was announced at a joint press conference in Islamabad, addressed by PPP AJK President Chaudhry Muhammad Yasin and JUI-F AJK chief Maulana Saeed Yousaf. Senior party figures, including Minister Mian Abdul Waheed and PPP’s Nabeela Ayub, were also present at the event.
Under the terms of the agreement, JUI-F will field joint candidates in two constituencies — LA-23 (Sudhnoti/Pallandri) and LA-14 (Western Bagh/Dhirkot). To facilitate this, PPP candidates Nabeela Ayub and Zobia Khurshid will withdraw their nomination papers from these seats. In exchange, JUI-F has committed to supporting PPP’s candidates in every other constituency.
Yasin described the agreement as a major development in AJK’s political landscape, crediting PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman for bringing the two parties together. He added that the PPP remains committed to raising the Kashmir issue at both national and international platforms.
For his part, Maulana Yousaf called it the first formal electoral alliance between the two parties in AJK’s history, and instructed JUI-F candidates contesting in other constituencies to withdraw their papers in compliance with the party’s decision.
Senior Minister Abdul Waheed said the alliance demonstrated political maturity and mutual understanding between the two leaderships, while Ayub confirmed she would withdraw her nomination and campaign for the joint candidate in her constituency, in line with party policy.
Leaders from both sides expressed optimism that the alliance would strengthen their position ahead of the polls and help them form the next AJK government.
Separately, the PPP released its first list of 35 candidates for the upcoming elections, covering constituencies in Mirpur, Bhimber, Kotli, Bagh, Poonch, Neelum, Muzaffarabad, and refugee seats representing AJK residents based elsewhere in Pakistan. Notable nominees include Afsar Shahid, Qasim Majeed, Yasar Sultan, and Chaudhry Sohaib Arshad, among others. According to party sources, the remaining candidates will be announced in a second phase in the coming days.
With campaign preparations entering their final stages, political observers expect the candidate announcements to further intensify election activity across AJK ahead of the July 27 vote.
— This report is based on information from news agency sources.
