Chaudhry Anwarul Haq

Prime Minister of AJ&K (2022 - present)
Chaudhry Anwarul Haq
چودهرى انوار الحق
15th Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir
Incumbent
Assumed office
20 April 2023
PresidentSultan Mehmood Chaudhry
Preceded bySardar Tanveer Ilyas
Member of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly
Incumbent
Assumed office
3 August 2021
Preceded byChaudhry Tariq Farooq
ConstituencyLA-7 Bhimber-III
In office
24 July 2006 – 25 July 2011
Succeeded byChaudhry Tariq Farooq
ConstituencyLA-7 Bhimber-III
Speaker of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly
In office
3 August 2021 – 20 April 2023
DeputyRiaz Gujjar
Preceded byShah Ghulam Qadir
Succeeded byChaudhry Latif Akbar
In office
16 August 2010 – 25 July 2011
DeputyMeher-un-Nisa
Preceded byShah Ghulam Qadir
Succeeded bySardar Ghulam Sadiq Khan
Personal details
Born1970
Bhimber, Azad Kashmir, Pakistan
CitizenshipPakistan
Political party Forward Block (2023-present)
Other political
affiliations		Independent (2016-2020)
Pakistan People's Party (2011-2016)
People's Muslim League (2006-2011)
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (2018-2023)
ResidenceIslamabad
ProfessionPolitician

Chaudhry Anwar ul Haq (Urdu: چودهرى انوار الحق) is a Pakistani politician from Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).[1] He is the current and 15th Prime Minister of AJK since April 2023, succeeding Sardar Tanveer Ilyas.[2]

He was a member of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI)[3] until September 7, 2023, when he was expelled from the party along with a group of political defectors.[4]

Early life and family

Anwar was born in Bhimber, Azad Kashmir, into a politically active family of the Jat community,[5] as his father Chaudhry Suhbat Ali was part of the 1947 Poonch rebellion which liberated current Azad Kashmir from the Dogras, while his brother Lt General (r) Chaudhary Ikram ul Haq is a former Defence Secretary (2018-2020).[6]

Political career

Anwar was elected to the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly in the 2006 Azad Kashmiri general election from LA-7 Bhimber-III as a candidate of the People's Muslim League. He defeated Chaudhry Tariq Farooq.

On 16 August 2010, he was elected as the Speaker of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly. He succeeded Shah Ghulam Qadir of the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference (AJKMC).[7]

He contested the 2011 Azad Kashmiri general election from LA-7 Bhimber-III as a candidate of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP), but was unsuccessful. He received 26,509 votes and was defeated by Chaudhry Tariq Farooq, a candidate of the Pakistan Muslim League (N) (PML(N)).

He contested the 2016 Azad Kashmiri general election from LA-7 Bhimber-III as an independent candidate, but was defeated by Chaudhry Tariq Farooq, a candidate of the PML(N). Anwar received 27,676 votes while Farooq received 30,339 votes.[8]

He was re-elected to the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly in the 2021 general election from LA-7 Bhimber-III as a candidate of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). He received 38,308 votes and defeated Chaudhry Tariq Farooq, a candidate of the (PML(N)).[9]

On 3 August 2021, he was elected as the Speaker of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly with 32 votes, defeating Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore of the PPP. He succeeded the outgoing Speaker Shah Ghulam Qadir of the PML(N).[2]

On 20 April 2023, he was elected unopposed as the 15th Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir with 48 votes in the 52-member AJK Legislative Assembly. He succeeded the previous Prime Minister, Sardar Tanveer Ilyas, who had been disqualified eight days prior.[1][10]

On 7 September, 2023, Dawn reported that the Kashmir chapter of the PTI had expelled Anwar in a crackdown against dissidents who had sided against Imran Khan's preferred candidate Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b Naqash, Tariq (2023-04-20). "Ghazanfar Abbas selected as AJK PM". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2023-04-20.
  2. ^ a b Naqash, Tariq (2021-08-04). "Chaudhry Ghazanfar Abbas, Riaz Ahmed elected speaker, deputy speaker of Azad Kashmir assembly". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2023-04-20.
  3. ^ Naqash, Tariq (20 April 2023). "Chaudhry Ghazanfar Abbas takes charge as AJK PM". DAWN.
  4. ^ a b Naqash, Tariq (2023-09-07). "Kashmir PTI expels defectors from party". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  5. ^ "Profile". Azad Kashmir Legislative Assembly. Archived from the original on 9 August 2023. Tribe : Jatt
  6. ^ Mirza, Amjad Ayub (21 April 2023). "Who is the new PM of PoK?". Asian News International. Archived from the original on 28 June 2023.
  7. ^ "Former Speaker Assembly List". AJK Legislative Assembly. Retrieved 2023-06-05.
  8. ^ "LA 7 Bhimber AJK Election Result 2016". www.electionpakistani.com. Retrieved 2023-06-05.
  9. ^ "LA-7 Results - AJK 2021 Results - Candidates,Party Position - geo.tv". www.geo.tv. Retrieved 2023-04-20.
  10. ^ "In setback to PTI, Anwarul Haq elected new AJK PM". The Express Tribune. 20 April 2023.