Country's overall situation, AJK comes under discussion as Dar meets Bilawal

Published Updated
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar meets with PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari at Aiwan i Sadr on July 14, 2026. —X/MediaCellPPP
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar meets with PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari at Aiwan i Sadr on July 14, 2026. —X/MediaCellPPP

PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Tuesday met with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar at the Aiwan-i-Sadr.

According to the PPP, the two discussed the “overall situation in the country, including matters relating to Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK)”.

Tuesday’s meeting comes ahead of the upcoming elections in the region, scheduled for July 27.

Last month, PPP’s Bilawal and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman announced that their parties would jointly contest the AJK general elections.

Meanwhile, ahead of the elections, the proscribed Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) has called for widespread protests demanding the abolition of 12 reserved seats.

Bilawal had also met with Dar last week to discuss the “situation in AJK and Gilgit-Baltistan”, according to Radio Pakistan.

“Both leaders also agreed on the importance of holding free, fair, and transparent forthcoming general elections in AJK,” the report said.

It is worth mentioning that last month, the PPP formed a government in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) with the support of the PML-N, mirroring the arrangement at the federal level.

Opinion

Editorial

Dire straits
Updated 14 Jul, 2026

Dire straits

FOR some time, the escalating confrontation between the US and Iran has been playing out round the strategically...
Ethnic targets
Updated 14 Jul, 2026

Ethnic targets

THE murder of five workers from Punjab in Mashkel is another grim reminder that ethnic violence remains a persistent...
Poverty punished
14 Jul, 2026

Poverty punished

THE challenge of illegal migrations should be viewed through a humanitarian lens. Harsh punishments for the poor...
Banking inertia
Updated 13 Jul, 2026

Banking inertia

PRIME Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s latest call to banks to expand lending to SMEs is nothing new. Every government...
Justice imperilled
13 Jul, 2026

Justice imperilled

THE Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and the International Federation for Human Rights have raised concerns about...
Toxic staple
13 Jul, 2026

Toxic staple

A RECENT article published in Dawn has shed light on the challenges being faced by Sindh’s chilli farmers, whose...