GILGIT: Opposition leader in Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly Amjad Hussain Advocate, the local president of the PPP, has resigned from his assembly membership ahead of the scheduled election for the new GB chief minister.

GB Assembly Speaker Nazir Ahmed Advocate confirmed the development to Dawn, but said he had not accepted the resignation.

Source said that Mr Hussain was not happy with the central party leadership over the nomination of a candidate for GB chief minister.

The new chief minister’s election has been scheduled for July 13.

In the 32-member house, PTI has 19 members, PPP four, PML-N three, Muttahida Wahdat-i-Muslimeen three, Islam Tehreek Pakistan one, JUI-F one, and one independent candidate. Former CM had nominated Raja Azam Khan for the coveted position with the approval of PTI chief Imran Khan.

Meanwhile, two forward blocs within PTI, one led by Javed Ali Manwa and another by Gulber Khan, have declared they would contest for the position of chief minister independently.

Initially, opposition parties had decided to nominate a joint candidate with support of disgruntled PTI members and claimed the support of required 17 members. The authority to decide the candidate from any opposition party member was given to the central leaderships of PPP, PML-N, and JUI-F.

However, sources said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in consultation with PPP and JUI-F, has nominated Haji Gulber Khan, a disgruntled member of PTI, for the position of chief minister.

Later, at a press conference, Mr Hussain announced that his party members had decided to boycott the election.

The PML-N and JUI-F GB members also expressed their dissatisfaction with the central leadership’s decision.

Published in Dawn, July 11th, 2023