Chaudhry Anwar ul Haq () is a

Pakistani Pakistanis (, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. As much as ...

politician from

Azad Jammu and Kashmir Azad Jammu and Kashmir (), abbreviated as AJK and colloquially referred to as simply Azad Kashmir ( ), is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entitySee: * * * and constituting the western portion of the larger ...

(AJK). He is the current and 15th Prime Minister of AJK since April 2023, succeeding Sardar Tanveer Ilyas. He was a member of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) until September 7, 2023, when he was expelled from the party along with a group of political defectors.

Early life and family

Anwar was born in Bhimber,

Azad Kashmir Azad Jammu and Kashmir (), abbreviated as AJK and colloquially referred to as simply Azad Kashmir ( ), is a region administered by Pakistan as a nominally self-governing entitySee: * * * and constituting the western portion of the larger ...

, into a politically active family of the Jat community, as his father Chaudhry Suhbat Ali was part of the 1947 Poonch rebellion which liberated current Azad Kashmir from the Dogras, while his brother Lt General (r) Chaudhary Ikram ul Haq is a former Defence Secretary (2018-2020).

Political career

Anwar was elected to the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly in the 2006 Azad Kashmiri general election from LA-7 Bhimber-III as a candidate of the People's Muslim League. He defeated Chaudhry Tariq Farooq. On 16 August 2010, he was elected as the Speaker of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly. He succeeded Shah Ghulam Qadir of the

All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference The All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference () also shortly referred as Muslim Conference (MC) is a political party in Pakistan administered territory of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The party was founded in 1941 by Chaudhry Ghulam Abbas, and Syed ...

(AJKMC). He contested the 2011 Azad Kashmiri general election from LA-7 Bhimber-III as a candidate of the

Pakistan People's Party The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is a political party in Pakistan and one of the three major Pakistani political parties alongside the Pakistan Muslim League (N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. With a centre-left political position, it is cu ...

(PPP), but was unsuccessful. He received 26,509 votes and was defeated by Chaudhry Tariq Farooq, a candidate of the

Pakistan Muslim League (N) The Pakistan Muslim League (N) or (PML(N)) is a Centre-right politics, centre-right, Conservatism in Pakistan, conservative political party in Pakistan. It is currently the third-largest party in the Senate of Pakistan, Senate and the larges ...

(PML(N)). He contested the 2016 Azad Kashmiri general election from LA-7 Bhimber-III as an independent candidate, but was defeated by Chaudhry Tariq Farooq, a candidate of the PML(N). Anwar received 27,676 votes while Farooq received 30,339 votes. He was re-elected to the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly in the 2021 general election from LA-7 Bhimber-III as a candidate of the

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is a political party in Pakistan established in 1996 by cricketer and politician Imran Khan, who served as the country's prime minister from 2018 to 2022. The party is led by Gohar Ali Khan since late 2023. ...

(PTI). He received 38,308 votes and defeated Chaudhry Tariq Farooq, a candidate of the (PML(N)). On 3 August 2021, he was elected as the Speaker of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly with 32 votes, defeating Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore of the PPP. He succeeded the outgoing Speaker Shah Ghulam Qadir of the PML(N). On 20 April 2023, he was elected unopposed as the 15th Prime Minister of Azad Kashmir with 48 votes in the 52-member AJK Legislative Assembly. He succeeded the previous Prime Minister, Sardar Tanveer Ilyas, who had been disqualified eight days prior. On 7 September 2023, ''Dawn'' reported that the Kashmir chapter of the PTI had expelled Anwar in a crackdown against dissidents who had sided against Imran Khan's preferred candidate Sardar Abdul Qayyum Niazi.

References

{{Prime Ministers of Azad Kashmir Living people Prime ministers of Azad Kashmir Members of the Legislative Assembly of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf politicians 1970 births