PPP names Amjad Hussain for Gilgit-Baltistan top post amid coalition talks

Islamabad,UPDATED: Jun 21, 2026 13:48 IST

The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Sunday named Advocate Amjad Hussain as its candidate for the so-called chief minister's post in Gilgit-Baltistan, days after it emerged as the single largest party in the so-called elections in the Pakistan-occupied region.

India maintains that the entire Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, including Gilgit-Baltistan, are integral and inalienable parts of India by virtue of the "complete, legal and irrevocable accession" of Jammu and Kashmir to India in 1947. On June 7, India lodged a strong protest with Pakistan over the so-called elections, saying Gilgit-Baltistan is part of Indian territory that has been "illegally and forcibly" occupied by Pakistan.

In a statement, the PPP said its chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari had nominated Hussain, a lawyer, for the top post. The party said, "Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has decided to appoint PPP's provincial president, Advocate Amjad Hussain, as the chief minister of Gilgit-Baltistan."

The statement added, "The PPP chairman issued instructions to Advocate Amjad regarding government formation and the implementation of the constitutional and economic rights of the people." In the polls, the PPP emerged as the largest party with 12 seats in the so-called 24-member Gilgit-Baltistan assembly.

Hussain served as a member of the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly from 2020 to 2025, and was a member of the region's legislative council from 2009 to 2014.

Earlier in the day, Dawn reported that the PPP would form a government in the region with the support of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz under a power-sharing formula similar to the arrangement at the federal level. According to a statement cited by the newspaper, the decision to form a coalition government was based on "mutual trust, consensus and consultation".

The newspaper said local PPP and PML-N leaders agreed on a proposed power-sharing arrangement under which the so-called chief minister will be from the PPP, while the governor and the leader of the opposition will be from the PML-N. It added that the post of deputy speaker will also go to the PML-N. "The decision of the PML-N's central leadership to support the PPP in forming a government has been endorsed by the local leadership," PML-N regional chief Hafeez Hafeezur Rehman said.

With the PPP naming Hussain for the top post after emerging as the largest party, the focus is now on government formation in Gilgit-Baltistan, where Dawn reported that a coalition with the PML-N is expected under a power-sharing formula.

With PTI Inputs

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