Nawaz Sharif eyes PoK PM post amid election campaign, region remains tense over protests
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Islamabad, July 23: Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said he wants to become the Prime Minister of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) if his party wins the upcoming regional elections, claiming he wants to personally oversee the development of the region.
Addressing an election rally in Muzaffarabad, the capital of PoK, Sharif said the region was as important to him as his home province of Punjab. "It is my second home. My ancestors migrated from Kashmir," he said. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief added that if his party secured victory, he would request Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to appoint him as the Prime Minister of PoK.
PoK is scheduled to hold elections between July 27 and August 10, with the PML-N contesting against the Pakistan People's Party (PPP), its coalition partner in Pakistan's federal government.
The announcement comes amid continuing unrest in the region. Pakistan-occupied Kashmir has witnessed widespread protests led by the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JKJAAC) over rising inflation, high electricity tariffs and alleged government privileges. According to reports, the protests and subsequent crackdown have claimed more than 30 lives.
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Although the JKJAAC had temporarily suspended its proposed long march until July 21, giving the Pakistani government what it described as a "final opportunity" to address its demands, the organisation later announced that the march towards Muzaffarabad would resume. Sit-in protests across PoK are also expected to continue despite the group being declared unlawful by Pakistani authorities.