MUZAFFARABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) has completed interviews for party tickets for the forthcoming general elections, with 186 applications received from across the territory despite what it described as “severe political and administrative challenges.”

The development was announced by the party’s regional information secretary, Azhar Gillani, in a press release issued on Monday. According to Mr Gillani, the interview process concluded in Mirpur late on Sunday after a series of sessions held across all three divisions of AJK.

He said the party received 53 applications from Mirpur division, 44 from Muzaffarabad division, 41 from Poonch division and 36 from constituencies reserved for Jammu and Kashmir refugees, including both Jammu- and Valley-based seats. He added that 12 applications were still pending due to incomplete documentation.

Mr Gillani said that despite the party not being formally registered in the AJK Election Commission and facing what he termed an “uphill political battle”, applications had been received from all 33 territorial constituencies as well as all refugee constituencies. He described the response as evidence of the public’s continued trust in PTI founder Imran Khan and his political narrative.

The PTI parliamentary board, headed by the party’s regional president and former prime minister Sardar Abdul Qayyum Khan Niazi, would expedite the ticket allocation process immediately after Eid, Mr Gillani said, adding that the final list of candidates would be announced soon afterwards.

He said the party would contest the elections “with full force” despite not having formal registration or an electoral symbol in AJK. “Our party will fight the current system with full might and repeat the political history of February 8 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.

Published in Dawn, May 26th, 2026