PTI’s AJK election boycott reflects political weakness: Dr. Tariq Fazal

ISLAMABAD, Jul 02 (APP): Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Dr. Tariq Fazal Chaudhry on Thursday said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) decision to boycott the upcoming Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) elections reflected the party’s political weakness and unwillingness to face the electorate.

In a statement posted on X, the minister said PTI was avoiding the elections out of fear that it would fail to secure public support.

He said the party, which had long claimed to be the country’s largest political force, was now attempting to avoid the people’s verdict by offering new justifications for its withdrawal from the electoral process.

Dr. Tariq said that if PTI truly believed in democracy and the people’s right to vote, it would not abandon the electoral contest.

He said that the party had made it a habit to create controversy ahead of every election and level allegations against state institutions.

He said avoiding the electoral process had become an old and unsuccessful political strategy for PTI, adding that boycotting elections instead of seeking the

people’s mandate amounted to disrespecting their right to vote.

The minister said political parties should face the electorate rather than shy away from elections, adding that avoiding the electoral process was not a sign of principle but an admission of a lack of public confidence.

He further said the people of Azad Jammu and Kashmir believed in practical leadership, responsible politics and the democratic process rather than emotional slogans.

He added that the public understood that the path to a democratic mandate lay through the ballot box, not through election boycotts or political theatrics.