PTI Chairman Gohar Ali Khan indicated Monday that his party could reconsider its boycott decision for the upcoming Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Legislative Assembly elections if provided a level playing field and leaders are not subjected to arrests or crackdowns.
Speaking to reporters, Gohar said the boycott decision was taken after consultations with the party’s parliamentary wing, allies, and PTI leadership in AJK. He stated that absence of a free political environment left the party no option but to boycott the elections.
“The PTI was compelled to boycott the AJK elections, but in politics nothing is final,” he said. “If we are provided a free and conducive environment, we can reconsider the boycott decision.”
He added that the PTI believed in democracy and described the boycott as a difficult decision, stating the party could return to electoral process if its leaders and workers were spared arrests and crackdowns.
The remarks came four days after PTI formally announced it would not contest the AJK Legislative Assembly elections scheduled for July 27. The party’s regional president and former AJK prime minister, Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi, had said the decision was taken in solidarity with the people of the region amid what the party described as a deepening political and humanitarian crisis.
The boycott followed weeks of unrest in AJK after the government banned the Joint Awami Action Committee (Jaac) under anti-terrorism legislation. Jaac has continued protests despite the ban, while clashes between protesters and security forces have left several people dead, with authorities and the group giving differing accounts of casualties.
PTI has also cited arrests of political workers, restrictions on media coverage, and disruption of supply lines from Punjab as reasons why the upcoming election cannot be considered credible under prevailing circumstances. The party has suspended all recommendations regarding ticket distribution for its AJK candidates pending a review of the situation.
Meanwhile, PTI’s legal status in AJK remains unresolved. The AJK High Court had earlier restored the party’s registration and ordered reinstatement of its electoral symbol, the bat, after the AJK Election Commission moved to revoke it. The election commission subsequently challenged the high court’s order before the AJK Supreme Court, which deferred hearing of the case on July 3. With the court’s summer recess continuing until October 7, the matter is unlikely to be decided before polling day.