LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Nawaz Sharif has nominated former Azad Jammu and Kashmir health and finance minister Dr Muhammad Najeeb Naqi Khan as the party’s candidate for the office of AJK president.
Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb announced the decision in a statement on X on Wednesday, saying Nawaz Sharif had directed Dr Naqi to submit his nomination papers for the presidential election. She and other PML-N leaders congratulated him on the nomination.
The decision was finalised after consultations among the party’s senior leadership, according to party sources. Dr Naqi belongs to Sudhnoti district and has remained active in AJK politics for several decades. He has previously held portfolios including health, finance, planning and development, education and information technology.
The AJK Election Commission has scheduled the presidential election for September 24. Candidates will submit their nomination papers between 10am and noon on September 19, followed by scrutiny the same day. Candidates can withdraw their nominations by 11:30am on September 23.
Polling will be held at the AJK Legislative Assembly Secretariat from 10am to 1pm on September 24, after which the votes will be counted and the result announced the same day. The president will be elected by a majority vote of the members of the Legislative Assembly.
The AJK Legislative Assembly has 53 seats, but its current strength is 46 following the 2026 general elections. The PML-N has a majority in the present house.
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The office of AJK president has remained vacant since the death of Barrister Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry on January 31. Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Latif Akbar initially served as acting president, while incumbent Speaker Chaudhry Tariq Farooq assumed the role after being elected speaker on August 25.
Dr Naqi was born in Rawalpindi in 1964 and received his early education at Aitchison College before earning an MBBS degree from King Edward Medical University, Lahore.
He entered politics following the death of his father, Col (retd) Muhammad Naqi Khan, who had also served as an AJK minister. Dr Naqi has been elected to the AJK Legislative Assembly for multiple terms from his native constituency in Sudhnoti.
