Political differences should never run into animosity, says Nawaz Sharif amid acrimony with PPP

Islamabad: Pakistan's former prime minister and PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif on Saturday said differences between parties should never run into animosity, apparently in response to the growing acrimony between the ruling party and its coalition partner, the PPP.

The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has criticised the conduct of the so-called elections held recently in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), terming the polls "rigged and violent".

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) bagged 24 seats while the PPP won only 10 constituencies during the first two phases held on July 27 and August 2.


The ruling PML-N is in power at the centre due to the support of the PPP, after the two sides struck a deal following the 2024 general elections.

Shehbaz Sharif, younger brother of the PML-N president, became the prime minister and Asif Ali Zardari of the PPP was elected as president.

Addressing a party convention in Murree, a hill resort near Islamabad, Nawaz Sharif congratulated the winners of the so-called elections in PoK, while extending commiserations to the losing candidates. However, he said that the complaints from the PPP have been "upsetting".

"We have always maintained good relations with our opponents. There is always disagreement in politics, but it should not reach the point where it creates animosity," he said, adding that it is "unacceptable".

PoK witnessed a series of protests since June over 12 contentious seats of the so-called regional legislative assembly spearheaded by the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), a collective of activist groups.

It alleges that the establishment manoeuvres these seats to install a prime minister of its choosing.

The JAAC has alleged that more than 40 people, including women and children, were killed since the elections began. Besides, it claims that 400 protesters have been killed since the first week of June.

India has described the elections as an attempt by Pakistan to camouflage its illegal occupation and hide its "grave" human rights violations in the region.

India maintains that the entire Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh are integral and inalienable parts of it.