MUZAFFARABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) nominee Barrister Syed Iftikhar Ali Gillani was elected the 17th prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Legislative Assembly on Friday. He defeated Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) candidate Sardar Mukhtar Ahmed Khan Abbasi in the Legislative Assembly election. According to HUM News, of the 44 votes polled, Barrister Iftikhar Gillani secured 30, while PPP’s Sardar Mukhtar Ahmed Abbasi received 14 votes. The AJK Legislative Assembly comprises 53 members, but its current strength stands at 46 as elections to seven seats in the Poonch and Sudhnoti districts have yet to be held. The PML-N and its allies currently have 32 members, while the PPP has 14 lawmakers in the assembly. Gillani’s election comes just weeks after he lost the LA-29 Muzaffarabad-III general election to Abbasi, before returning to the AJK Assembly through a reserved technocrat seat.