Muzaffarabad: When the PML-N formally launched its Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) chapter in Dec 2010, few people in the gathering knew the young man whose striking portrait adorned the hoardings placed around the stage.
His name, prominently displayed beneath his photograph, was Barrister Iftikhar Ali Gillani.
Fifteen years later — after a political journey marked by an influential background, an unexpected electoral breakthrough, a stint in the cabinet, defeat, political uncertainty and an extraordinary run of luck — the same young politician is poised to become AJK’s next prime minister.
Born in Muzaffarabad on July 27, 1980, Gillani received his early education in Islamabad, and later went to London, earning a bachelor’s degree from SOAS before being called to the bar at the prestigious Lincoln’s Inn in 2005, and enrolling as a lawyer in Islamabad the following year.
‘Dark horse’ candidate hails from influential political family; has worked closely with Maryam Nawaz
Politics, thanks to his family background, was hardly unfamiliar territory for him.
Gillani is the eldest of four siblings and was raised mostly by his paternal grandmother, who is remembered in Muzaffarabad for her philanthropic work and patronage of several charitable organisations. His paternal grandfather, Syed Bunyad Ali Shah Gillani, was also a known trader and transporter in the city.
His father, Syed Asif Ali Gillani, had been a friend of Raja Mumtaz Hussain Rathore, the veteran PPP leader and father of outgoing PM Faisal Mumtaz Rathore. Through that association, the senior Gillani also joined the PPP, though he had withdrawn from active politics before his son entered the arena.
An unlikely win
In the 2011 elections, then-PML-N regional president Raja Farooq Haider contested from both Muzaffarabad and Chikar, winning both seats.
When he chose to retain Chikar and vacated his Muzaffarabad seat, many PML-N leaders found themselves reluctant to contest the ensuing by-election. Conventional wisdom dictated that the city would not elect an opposition candidate.
The ruling party, meanwhile, decided not to field a local party figure. Instead, it awarded a ticket to Sardar Usman Attique, son of Muslim Conference president and former AJK PM Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan.
The choice of an “outsider” proved consequential, igniting local-versus-outsider sentiment in the constituency, which worked in the young man’s favour, allowing him to win the by-election with a comfortable margin.
He was made focal person and coordinator of the Prime Minister’s Youth Business Loan Programme, where he had the opportunity to work closely with Maryam Nawaz. He was also part of the PML-N’s central manifesto committee ahead of the 2013 general elections.
Mr Gillani retained his seat in the 2016 AJK polls, when the PML-N swept to power in AJK and was inducted into the cabinet as minister for higher and school education. The portfolio was subsequently bifurcated, with higher education assigned to another minister, but he remained in the cabinet for the full five-year term.
However, his political fortunes changed dramatically in 2021 when the PML-N suffered a setback in the elections, securing only four territorial seats. Mr Gillani was among those who lost their seats. The defeat temporarily appeared to interrupt what had until then been a remarkably smooth political ascent.
Dark horse
There was little indication ahead of the recent AJK elections that Mr Gillani’s political fortunes were about to be revived.
Raja Farooq Haider was reportedly unhappy with him, while some of his close friends and associates also declined to support him. Combined with other factors, this contributed to his defeat in the general election.
However, the PML-N leadership considered Mr Gillani once again for one of the seats reserved for technocrats and other professionals. While it was expected that he may be in line to receive an important ministry, it came as a surprise when his name started circulating as a candidate for the office of prime minister.
When PML-N regional secretary general Chaudhary Tariq Farooq was nominated for the office of speaker, the prevailing assumption was that regional party president Shah Ghulam Qadir would be the natural choice for AJK PM.
But on Wednesday night, PM Shehbaz Sharif summoned Speaker Tariq Farooq, Deputy Speaker Ahmed Raza Qadri, Shah Ghulam Qadir and former PM Raja Farooq Haider for a meeting. There, he conveyed the decision of PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif: Iftikhar Gillani would be the party’s candidate for the AJK premiership.
The decision was not universally welcomed within the regional setup, with Mr Haider and Mr Qadir opposing it, saying they would abstain from the election.
Published in Dawn, August 28th, 2026
