• PPP says it will accept only transparent poll results
• Nadeem Afzal Chan accuses PML-N of using state resources
• Urges greater focus on Balochistan, Sindh
ISLAMABAD: A war of words between ruling coalition partners Pakistan Peoples Party and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz intensified on Sunday over the Azad Jammu and Kashmir elections, as the PML-N claimed victory while the PPP questioned the transparency of the process and alleged interference in the polls.
Responding to statements by PML-N President Nawaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz regarding the AJK elections, PPP Information Secretary Nadeem Afzal Chan said his party would accept only results of genuinely free and fair elections.
In a statement, Mr Chan criticised the PML-N leadership for celebrating results of polls he said had been marred by local controversies and alleged interference.
He said questions were being raised over the results and argued that holding elections in different phases across AJK created room for manipulation.
Addressing Nawaz Sharif, Mr Chan claimed the AJK elections had been conducted in a manner similar to polls in Punjab, implying administrative interference.
He criticised the PML-N leadership for celebrating the results despite opposition complaints, boycotts by a major political party and questions over the law-and-order situation during polling.
The PPP, he said, had already raised concerns over the alleged use of federal machinery and government resources during different phases of the elections.
“The PPP would accept its defeat if the elections were genuinely free and fair,” he said.
Mr Chan urged Nawaz Sharif, whom he described as an elder political figure, to seek the views of people across Kashmir. He alleged that results had been prepared “according to choice”, as he claimed had happened previously in Punjab.
While acknowledging that Maryam Nawaz was working hard as Punjab chief minister, he said his criticism was directed at the PML-N’s political and governance record rather than individuals.
Governance record
He said Nawaz Sharif and the PML-N had remained in or around power for much of the period since 1985, excluding the rule of former military ruler Pervez Musharraf and the three years of the PTI government. He also noted that several PML-N politicians had joined the PML-Q during the Musharraf era.
At the same time, Mr Chan acknowledged weaknesses in the PPP’s communication strategy.
“I admit this is our mistake,” he said, arguing that the PPP had failed to effectively publicise its achievements while the PML-N had been more successful in promoting its projects.
He challenged the PML-N to compare its record with the PPP’s on privatisation, agriculture, infrastructure, energy and political victimisation.
He said the PPP leadership had representation from smaller provinces and questioned the PML-N’s record in Sindh and Balochistan.
“Pakistan is not just Lahore,” he said, urging the PML-N leadership to pay greater attention to the two provinces.
Published in Dawn, August 17th, 2026
