All Pakistan Muslim League

Formed in: 2010 Former president gen Pervez Musharraf announced the formation of his political party to keep his...
Published July 18, 2018

Formed in: 2010

Former president gen Pervez Musharraf announced the formation of his political party to keep his political aspirations alive after he resigned from presidency.

Top APML Leaders

  • Pervez Musharraf
  • Dr Mohammad Amjad

Key concerns

  • Eradication of corruption and nepotism from Pakistan
  • Enlightened moderation

2018 elections

APML has fielded candidates from 47 NA seats — out of these, 24 seats are from Punjab, 10 from Sindh, 10 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, one from Balochistan and two from Islamabad.

2013 elections

APML won a seat each in the National Assembly and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's provincial assembly from Chitral, despite announcing a boycott of 2013 general elections.

APML's 2018 manifesto

APML 2018 Manifesto by Dawndotcom on Scribd

Major political plays and controversies

  • Failing to build its own base, APML has been looking for alliances with other political parties. For the 2018 polls, APML chairman Dr Muhammad Amjad withdrew his papers from two NA constituencies in Islamabad in favour of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) candidates. Earlier, APML also tried to lead a so-called grand political alliance of 23 parties, but failed in sustaining a momentum leading up to the election on that front.

  • In November 2017, APML's founding leader Musharraf welcomed an alliance between the MQM-P and PSP. At the time, he said he was delighted to see a merger of political forces representing the Mohajir community and that it was necessary for the community to unite under one political umbrella.The alliance, which PSP chief Mustafa Kamal said was brokered by the establishment, turned out to be very shortlived.

  • Karachi has been a key area of focus for the party as it is felt that Musharraf enjoys political support in the city. However, there is no concrete evidence to prove the claim. The party has not won any elections from Karachi, nor have its rallies in the city, which Musharraf addresses via video, been impressive.

  • Despite repeatedly trying to get the party going, the APML has failed to take off as its founding leader remains in self-imposed exile in Dubai because of the cases he faces cases in Pakistan's courts. Recently, Musharraf was also disqualified for life by the Peshawar High Court and as per election laws he cannot head a political party.

  • In December 2017, APML founder Musharraf said he is open to forming a political alliance with the proscribed Jamaatud Dawa (JuD) and its chief, Hafiz Saeed. International powers, including the US and India, consider JuD to be a front for Lashkar-i-Taiba, the militant group blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that left 166 people dead.

  • APML founder Musharraf resigned from the party's chairmanship following his disqualification by the PHC. After he stepped down, the party's Central Executive Committee elected Dr Mohammad Amjad as their new leader, with Mehreen Malik Adam set to serve as secretary general.