MUZAFFARABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Friday vowed to bring about a revolution of development in Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK), where his party got a clean sweep victory in the election of the AJK Legislative Assembly.
While addressing a public gathering, he thanked the Kashmiri people for supporting his party to win 32 seats out of 41 of the Legislative Assembly. Nawaz came directly from Islamabad, a day after reaching the federal capital, after his recovery from the open heart surgery in London.
Nawaz said that the Kashmiri people have defeated the leaders of the opposition parties and pointed to the defeat of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) Barrister Sultan by his party’s Chaudhry Saeed. Commenting on the recently announced PTI’s mass movement against his government, he said, “They (PTI) will launch the movement only to the size of what they got in AJK general election, just two seats, while PML-N got 32.”
Nawaz Sharif assured the charged gathering that the next five years would be an example for AJK as PML-N’s would-be government is going to develop a network of motorways and highways, besides spending large sums on education and health sectors. He also appreciated the successful electioneering in AJK by his team that included Pervaiz Rashid, Asif Kirmani, Barjis Tahir, Raja Farooq Haider and local party leaders as he was unable to take part in it due to his open heart surgery in London.
He said the opposition parties heavily criticised him during the election campaign but he did not respond to anyone. “Performance, not sit-ins, brings about success in politics. We are setting a new record of development in Pakistan that is being evidenced by the world. Pakistan has joined the emerging markets,” Nawaz remarked.
Minister for Defence Khawaja Asif, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Pervaiz Rashid, Minister for Kashmir Affairs Barjis Tahir and Special Assistant to PM Asif Kirmani accompanied the prime minister, who was received by the PML-N leader Raja Farooq Haider, along with other party leaders in the AJK capital.
