Sultan forms forward bloc in AJK Assembly

MUZAFFARABAD: AJK President Barrister Sultan Mehmood has revolted against the PTI Chairman Imran Khan and constituted his own forward block in the AJK Legislative Assembly causing complications for the party, sources say.

The legislative assembly failed to pick the leader of the house on Monday following the disqualification of Sardar Tanveer Ilyas by the regional high court in a contempt case. It will meet again on Tuesday (today).

According to reports, the bloc has the backing of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN). Shah Ghulam Qadir, regional president of PML-N, said their alliance was with the PPP as per a“power-sharing formula,” adding that they would be obliged to vote for the PPP candidate if they proposed one for PM.

However, the PPP did not contact the PML-N during their negotiations with Chaudhry’s forward bloc, nor did the bloc reach out to them. The PML-N leader noted that if the situation persists, his party, which possesses seven votes, will make its own decision. Nonetheless, reports suggest that Chaudhry contacted the PMLN after seeing Qadir’s response, seeking support for the forward bloc candidate.