By Staff Reporter
MUZAFFARABAD: Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has warned that a stolen election in Azad Jammu and Kashmir would set off a “countdown” for the federal government, escalating a rigging row with coalition partner PML-N that has overshadowed the territory’s staggered legislative elections.
Addressing a charged public rally in Muzaffarabad on Thursday, the Pakistan Peoples Party chairman renewed his party’s accusations that the first phase of polling, held in Mirpur division on Monday, had been marred by manipulation — allegations the PML-N has firmly denied.
“The PML-N thinks that after its defeat in Gilgit-Baltistan, a defeat in AJK would mean a countdown begins for its government,” Bilawal told the crowd. “But this is a misconception.”
He went further, issuing a direct warning to the ruling party. “If you steal [the election] … write it down, take my guarantee, that a countdown will start for your federal government,” he said. “If you steal my mandate, I will come for your throne.”
The Mirpur division count, released after Monday’s vote, gave PML-N nine of the division’s 13 assembly seats, with the PPP taking four — a result the PPP has disputed, saying it holds proof of having won between 90 and 100 percent of the vote in the division. The party says this evidence was submitted to the AJK Election Commission, only for a notification favouring PML-N to be issued instead.
“I want to ask the election commissioner: are you an election commissioner for the PML-N, or the state of AJK?” Bhutto-Zardari said, arguing that a notification could not conceal theft or obstruct justice. He demanded that complaints over the first phase be heard in public before the second round of voting on August 2, and called for polling station results and ballot counts to be released.
“If it is not theft, then what are you hiding?” he said, urging the commission to restore its credibility.
Rigging row splits key coalition allies
The dispute has strained relations between the PPP and PML-N, who govern together at the Centre. The two parties have traded increasingly barbed accusations since polling began, with Bhutto-Zardari branding Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz “products” of Form 47 — a reference to the PPP’s long-standing complaint that the 2024 general election results were manipulated in PML-N’s favour. Punjab chief minister has hit back by calling the PPP the “master” of rigging.
According to the AJK chief election commissioner, voting will move to Muzaffarabad division on August 2, before a final phase in Poonch division on August 10.
Message to PTI: ‘stop boycotting’
Bhutto-Zardari used the rally to appeal directly to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, which has rejected the AJK elections outright over its own rigging concerns, urging the party to abandon what he called “boycott politics” and return to the field.
“Boycotting elections, boycotting Parliament, boycotting committees, boycotting your work, boycotting struggle — if you want to boycott, you might as well just sit at home,” he said.
“Today I extend my hand towards PTI’s workers, towards its serious politicians,” he added. “To every political party that is tired of rigging, to every political worker who wants to make their own decision, come and join your hands with mine.”
He said he hoped opposition parties could unite behind parliamentary reforms to secure fair elections, both in Kashmir and nationally, and said he was willing to work with any party prepared to pursue that goal. He also said a constitutional convention would be convened after the AJK elections conclude, bringing together government and opposition figures alongside Kashmiri refugees, lawyers and civil society representatives to discuss constitutional reform.
On the question of preventing further rigging, Bhutto-Zardari said there was only one real safeguard: turnout so overwhelming that any “injection” of fraudulent votes would be rendered meaningless. He urged PPP supporters to mobilise in force for the August 2 vote in Muzaffarabad.
Development record and Kashmir’s future
Bhutto-Zardari also used the platform to contrast the two parties’ development records in the territory. Responding to PML-N’s pledge to supply buses to Kashmir, he said: “If you come to Muzaffarabad bringing the spectacle of what you have done in Lahore, people will ask: what have you done in Muzaffarabad?”
He pointed to the unfinished CMH flyover project, which he said had remained incomplete for five years, and credited the PPP with building all three of Kashmir’s medical colleges as well as its universities.
“I don’t want to make Kashmir into Punjab, or even Sindh,” he said. “I want … to make Kashmir into a strong Kashmir. I want to see it free.”
He said the incoming government’s first task must be easing the practical hardships facing AJK residents — including reopening roads, restoring the supply of essential goods, and reconnecting internet and banking services cut off amid recent unrest. He said the PPP intended to bring “fast, modern” internet access to the region.
Sovereignty, resources and refugee rights
Much of Bhutto-Zardari’s address centred on Kashmir’s constitutional standing within Pakistan. He said the region’s future — its elections, its resources and its governance — must be decided by Kashmiris themselves through their elected assembly, and pledged to deliver what he described as “sovereignty, ownership and employment” for AJK’s people.
He said Kashmir should have guaranteed representation and a voice in the federal institutions that decide matters affecting the region, including its water, electricity, economy, budget and future. Recalling that Benazir Bhutto had secured observer status for Kashmiris at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, he pledged to extend similar observer status to Kashmiri representatives on the National Finance Commission, the Council of Common Interests, the National Assembly and the Senate.
“Election decisions should be done by ballots, not bullets. Votes should be counted during the election, not bodies,” he said.
He extended the same commitment to Kashmiri refugees, describing them as “a part of our existence, our history and our movement,” and called for their proportional representation in the AJK Assembly to be protected. He warned that any manipulation of refugee votes would leave their long-standing grievances unresolved.
On resources, Bhutto-Zardari aid Kashmiri citizens were the rightful owners of the region’s natural wealth, and called for protection of its rivers and environment alongside a fair financial return for their use. He said jobs generated by resource projects in the region should go first to local Kashmiri youth.
He also renewed a call to establish a truth commission to address the unrest and protests that have periodically flared across different parts of AJK.
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