Overview
- Finance Minister Abdul Majid Khan, Food Minister Chaudhry Akbar Ibrahim and Sports Minister Asim Sharif Butt announced their resignations on October 17, following an earlier resignation announcement by Information Minister Pir Mazhar Saeed.
- Two of the three departing ministers publicly urged Prime Minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq to step down, alleging he failed to safeguard the constitutional rights of Kashmiri refugees.
- The resignations protest an accord between a federal committee and the Joint Awami/Action Committee that addresses abolishing 12 legislative seats reserved for refugees.
- Khan and Ibrahim said they had written to President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief Gen. Syed Asim Munir to seek action on the dispute.
- Saeed’s resignation was reported as received but not yet accepted, and Dunya News reported that PPP and PML-N decided to part ways with the AJK government.