• PML-N leadership continues consultations over formation of next govt in the region
• Election for eight reserved seats on 24th
• Victory notifications issued for Bagh polls

MUZAFFARABAD: PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Sunday conducted interviews with candidates vying for party tickets for five women’s reserved seats in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Legislative Assembly.

The interviews were held in Murree, where the PML-N leadership has been conducting discussions regarding the allocation of reserved seats and the government formation process following the recent AJK elections.

PML-N AJK Regional President Shah Ghulam Qadir and Prime Minister’s Adviser on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah also attended the session.

In a statement issued after the meeting, the PML-N said the leadership appreciated the “active and significant” role played by women in the AJK elections, describing their participation as a welcome development for strengthening the democratic process.

Earlier, aspiring candidates appeared for individual interviews before the party leadership. Each interview lasted between five and 10 minutes.

Those who appeared before the leadership included the widow of late Raja Abid Khan of Dadyal, whose son Raja Shoaib Abid had withdrawn his candidature in favour of the party’s ticket-holder and MLA-elect Chaudhry Azhar Sadiq.

Other candidates included PML-N AJK Women’s Wing President Maryam Kashmiri of Muzaffarabad, Women’s Wing Secretary General Nasira Azeem Khan of Poonch, Sehrish Qamar of Sudhnoti, who served as an MLA on a reserved seat from 2016 to 2021, Nisara Abbasi, who served on a reserved seat in the outgoing Assembly, Maryam Idrees of Mirpur, Maria Iqbal Tarana of Muzaffarabad and Zareeda Nisar from Kotli.

The PML-N, which has secured 25 directly elected seats and one allied member, expects to win four of the five women’s reserved seats. The party is also expected to secure all three other reserved seats.

Schedule announced

Meanwhile, the AJK Election Commission on Sunday announced the schedule for elections to eight reserved seats in the Legislative Assembly, with polling set to take place on Aug 24.

Under Article 22(1) of the AJK Constitution, the Legislative Assembly consists of 53 members, including 45 members elected directly through adult franchise and eight members chosen by directly elected representatives.

The reserved seats include five seats for women and one each for Ulema-i-Din or Mashaikh well-versed in the teachings of Islam, Jammu and Kashmir State subjects residing abroad, and technocrats and other professionals.

However, elections to seven of the 45 directly elected seats — five in Poonch district and two in Sudhnoti district — could not be held due to the law and order situation.

As a result, the 38 members elected so far, representing 84.4 per cent of the directly elected membership, will participate in the reserved seat elections.

The election schedule was issued by Secretary of the Election Commission Raja Muhammad Shakeel under Rule 76(2) of the AJK Elections Rules, 2020.

According to the schedule, candidates will submit their nomination papers to the Returning Officer in Muzaffarabad on Aug 20 between 9am and 2pm. Scrutiny of nomination papers and publication of the list of validly nominated candidates will take place at 2pm on the same day.

Appeals against the acceptance or rejection of nomination papers can be filed before the Election Commission on Aug 21 between 9am and noon. The commission will hear the appeals on Aug 22 from 9am to noon and announce its decisions between 1pm and 4pm.

Candidates will be allowed to withdraw their candidature until 2pm on Aug 23, after which the final list of contesting candidates will be published.

Polling for the reserved seats will be held on Aug 24 at the AJK Legislative Assembly Hall in the Civil Secretariat, Muzaffarabad, from 10am to 1pm. The election will complete the process of filling reserved seats in the newly elected assembly.

The Election Commission also issued a separate notification on Sunday, declaring Sardar Ziaul Qamar of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Sardar Mir Akbar of the PML-N as returned candidates following general elections held on Aug 10 and Aug 15 in Bagh district.

Qamar was declared the returned candidate from LA-15 (Central Bagh), while Akbar was declared the returned candidate from LA-16 (Eastern Bagh). The notifications formally confirmed the results of the two constituencies after the completion of the election process in the Bagh district.

Published in Dawn, August 17th, 2026