PML-N’s Najeeb Naqi Elected President in PoJK; India Dismisses Process as Farce
In a key political development in Muzaffarabad, senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Dr. Najeeb Naqi was officially elected as the new president of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) on Thursday. Convening for the decisive constitutional balloting, the regional legislative body cast votes to determine the executive seat, with Naqi securing a decisive tally of 32 votes. His primary contender, Chaudhry Latif Akbar representing the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), managed to gather 13 votes in the final count, paving the way for a renewed administrative order under the ruling party's umbrella.
Filling Vacancy Left by Former President’s Demise
The presidential position in the occupied territory had remained vacant since January following the passing of former officeholder Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry. Naqi’s successful elevation brings an end to months of interim governance arrangements in the regional capital. Regarded by political insiders as one of the most reliable loyalists of PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and the central party hierarchy, Naqi previously handled the ministerial portfolio for health, giving him administrative familiarity within the local governing apparatus. Following the official declaration of the poll outcome, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif extended formal congratulations from Islamabad, affirming full backing for the incoming setup.
Medical Background to Political Prominence
Born on January 19, 1964, in Rawalpindi, Najeeb Naqi followed a distinct trajectory before stepping into mainstream politics. He completed his foundational schooling at the elite Aitchison College in Lahore before pursuing medical sciences at the renowned King Edward Medical College, earning his professional degree in medicine in 1988. After spending his formative years largely removed from full-time party politics, his steady ascent within the PML-N establishment positioned him as a core strategist trusted by Islamabad's ruling alliance to oversee regional governance.
India Outrightly Rejects Regional Electoral Exercises
Reacting to the ongoing political maneuvers in the occupied territory, the Indian government firmly reiterated its established sovereign position, dismissing the entire regional political sequence and recent local polls as a complete sham. Ministry of External Affairs officials in New Delhi highlighted that such orchestrated, hollow administrative exercises orchestrated by Islamabad have no legal locus standi and fail entirely to obscure the territorial realities and human rights concerns on the ground. India reaffirmed that the entire territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh remains an integral and inalienable part of the nation, rendering administrative changes carried out in Muzaffarabad legally void.
