MUZAFFARABAD: Former Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) prime minister and senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Raja Farooq Haider on Monday warned that the region’s constitutional and administrative system was under “serious threat”, insisting that the 13th Constitutional Amendment could neither be repealed nor altered through judicial intervention.

Speaking at a ceremony marking the 60th death anniversary of his father and former Muslim Conference president Raja Mohammad Haider Khan, he said any attempt to roll back the amendment or revive the erstwhile Kashmir Council structure would reverse hard-earned constitutional gains.

His remarks came a day before a larger bench of the AJK High Court is set to take up petitions challenging, in whole or in part, the amendment, enacted in June 2018 during his PML-N government. One of the petitions, filed by former premier Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan, seeks its annulment on the grounds that it was introduced without the federal government’s concurrence.

“No court can abolish the 13th Amendment; courts cannot amend the Constitution,” Mr Haider said, adding that such petitions should be dismissed at the first hearing as constitutional amendments fell within parliament’s domain. He cautioned that any move to revert AJK to a pre-amendment governance framework should be openly debated.

Describing the post-amendment dispensation as the outcome of a prolonged political struggle, he said powers transferred to AJK after decades could not be taken back. He alleged that those who had benefited from centralised control were now uncomfortable with the new arrangement, which, he said, had also improved the region’s financial position and governance. He credited Nawaz Sharif for playing a key role in the transfer of powers.

Referring to his 2020 remark about being the “last prime minister”, Mr Haider questioned the authority of his successors, claiming they lacked meaningful powers. He also criticised what he termed “covert attempts” to undermine the system and urged critics to come forward openly.

Touching on the broader Kashmir dispute, he reiterated that under Article 257 of Pakistan’s Constitution, the people of Jammu and Kashmir would determine their future relationship with Pakistan upon achieving freedom.

He reaffirmed that refugees remained an integral part of AJK’s political and social fabric and said he could not betray the legacy of leaders such as Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas, Mirwaiz Maulana Yusuf Shah and K. H. Khurshid, vowing to continue his struggle for the state’s identity and public rights.

The former premier also alleged that attempts had been made in the past to dilute AJK’s institutional framework and recalled facing pressure during his tenure. He said he had made it clear to former prime minister Imran Khan that developments witnessed in India-held Kashmir would not be allowed to be replicated in AJK.

He urged the youth to safeguard the gains made through the amendment, noting that for decades even basic administrative authority had remained outside AJK’s control.

Among others, former ministers Sardar Farooq Sikandar, Raja Abdul Qayyum and Barrister Iftikhar Gillani also addressed the gathering.

Published in Dawn, April 21st, 2026