Report: Naseem Hassan/ANI
ISLAMABAD — Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, in his capacity as Chairman of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Council, on Tuesday administered the oath to four newly elected members of the Council and assured the people of AJK that the federal government would mobilise all available resources for the region’s development and prosperity.
The newly elected members are Chaudhry Latif Akbar, Mushtaq Ahmed Minhas, Chaudhry Muhammad Saeed and Chaudhry Manzoor Ahmed. They were elected by the AJK Legislative Assembly under Article 21(4) of the AJK Interim Constitution, 1974.
Addressing the oath-taking ceremony, PM Shehbaz congratulated the new members and urged them to work in the larger interest of Azad Kashmir. He described the AJK Council as a bridge between Azad Kashmir and Pakistan and called for collective efforts to strengthen it.
The prime minister urged the AJK president and prime minister to make full use of their constitutional roles and resolve public issues through consultation and mutual cooperation. He assured the AJK leadership of the federal government’s full support and said resources would be provided to accelerate development, including improvements in education, healthcare and basic public facilities.
Referring to recent unfortunate incidents in AJK, PM Shehbaz said the government had made efforts to resolve issues through dialogue and consultation. He said elections had subsequently been held and the elected Assembly had come into being.
The prime minister also paid tribute to the armed forces under Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir for their role in last year’s Marka-e-Haq and congratulated the armed forces and the nation on the achievement.
PM Shehbaz said the government, under the leadership of PML-N Quaid Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, would continue working for the development and prosperity of Azad Kashmir.
AJK President Dr Muhammad Najeeb Naqi Khan, AJK Prime Minister Syed Iftikhar Ali Gilani, Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs Engineer Amir Muqam, AJK Assembly Speaker and members of the Council attended the ceremony.
