ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday chaired a meeting of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s (PTI) parliamentary committee in the legislative assembly of Azad Jammu and Kashmir but no decision could be taken about who would be the next AJK premier during the huddle.

The four leaders who have emerged as strong contenders for the coveted position — Sardar Tanveer Ilyas, Barrister Sultan Mehmood, Khawaja Farooq and Azhar Sadiq — were also present on the occasion.

After the meeting Sardar Tanveer confirmed that so far no decision had been taken on the vital issue. In response to a question, he said he was ready to take on any responsibility.

Selection of speaker, deputy also came under discussion

He said the issue of selection of the next speaker and deputy speaker of the AJK Legislative Assembly also came under discussion during the meeting.

Mr Khan had on Friday and Saturday interviewed no less than seven candidates for the position of AJK premier. The prime minister put various questions to them, relating to their future strategy and views on environment, tourism and national and international issues.

According to a source, Prime Minister Khan expressed displeasure over the fact that he was being contacted by different quarters for exerting pressure on him to select particular candidates.

Published in Dawn, August 2nd , 2021