Faisal Mumtaz Rathore of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) was elected prime minister of Pakistan-administered Kashmir on Monday, following a no-confidence vote that removed Chaudhry Anwar-ul-Haq from office.
Rathore, who will take his oath on Tuesday, becomes the region’s fourth leader in four years and the 16th prime minister overall. PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is expected to attend the swearing-in ceremony.
Rathore hails from a political lineage: he is the son of Raja Mumtaz Hussain Rathore, who briefly served as prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir from June 1990 to July 1991. His father’s tenure ended after he dissolved the legislative assembly, though he remained active in regional politics, later serving as speaker of the assembly.
Earlier on Monday, Rathore resigned as local government minister in Haq’s cabinet before securing the premiership in the 53-member legislative assembly. A candidate must secure at least 27 votes to be elected. The no-confidence motion against Haq passed with 36 votes, supported by the PPP and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), while two lawmakers opposed it.
The leadership change comes less than nine months before general elections and continues a period of political instability in Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Since 2021, four prime ministers have cycled through the office due to party fractures, judicial interventions, and shifting political alliances.
Following the 2021 elections, PTI's Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi became prime minister but resigned eight months later ahead of a no-confidence move initiated by a breakaway faction of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). Businessman Sardar Tanveer Ilyas succeeded him but was disqualified by the high court for contempt in April 2023, marking the first judicial removal of a prime minister in the region.
Chaudhry Anwar-ul-Haq took office in October 2023 with rare cross-party backing, including support from the PPP and PML-N. Initially linked to the PTI, he later led the party’s forward bloc. His tenure, however, was marred by recurring protests led by the Jammu and Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee over rising living costs and shortages of essential commodities such as electricity and subsidized wheat flour.
Some demonstrations turned violent, resulting in casualties among both protesters and security personnel, prompting Islamabad to send a delegation to mediate with protest leaders.
Political pressure intensified further in early October 2025, when fresh unrest claimed at least nine lives. While temporary agreements between the government and protest organizers eased tensions, the PPP moved forward with a no-confidence vote that ultimately removed Haq after nearly two years in office.
Rathore now assumes leadership of a politically fragmented region approaching elections, with immediate challenges including widespread economic grievances, governance reforms and maintaining civil stability - issues that have repeatedly triggered unrest in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
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