Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Monday vows that he would “fight the struggle” on the national level for the people of GB.
He was addressing the oath-taking ceremony for newly elected chief minister Amjad Hussain.
“While a new generation is fighting this struggle here, god-willing, this new generation will take your struggle forward on the level of Pakistan,” the Bhutto scion said, pointing towards himself.
He called for the people of GB to be provided constitutional rights. “I want to see that day when the representatives of GB would be present with me in the National Assembly,” he said, prompting the audience to give applause.
He said those representatives could be termed as “interim” or as “ambassadors” temporarily till the matter was voted upon, but it was important to have them in the NA and the Senate.
The PPP chairman also called for representatives from GB and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) to be included in the National Finance Commission (NFC), stressing that it would be under a temporary arrangement.
Bilawal asserted that his party got the mandate on “three fundamental rules” that were part of his manifesto.
“Now, it is a responsibility on your shoulders and mine that we convince the state and government of Pakistan and bring all political parties on the same page and create consensus to secure the constitutional right of governance.”
He further said that it was the GB government’s responsibility to fulfil the promised right to property and “make the people of GB the owners of their land”.
Acknowledging that there were financial challenges, the PPP chairman affirmed that it was his government’s responsibility to create a conducive environment for greater employment opportunities for the people of GB.
“You gained independence from the Dogra rule, but then slavery under the FCR was imposed upon you,” Bilawal said, referring to the Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) that was widely condemned as an oppressive law.
He recalled that his grandfather Zulfikar Ali Bhutto revoked the FCR, and that under his mother, ex-PM Benazir Bhutto, they “got the political space”.
Describing the people of GB as patriotic, Bilawal noted that President Asif Ali Zardari led the efforts for the region to be recognised as Gilgit-Baltistan.
During his speech, Bilawal thanked PM Shehbaz for “accepting” the PPP’s mandate in GB.
“I want to create a new political environment in GB,” he said, expressing his aim to change the view of politics being a “synonym for fights and enmity”.
Bilawal pledged to work for the region’s progress together with all political parties.
“I am also thankful to the candidates of MWM (Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen) and those supported by the PTI. They also had a role in the unopposed election of my chief minister,” he said.
Bilawal, also a former foreign minister, also noted the geostrategic importance of GB.
He hailed soldiers for manning the “toughest borders of the world” along the Kashmir and GB regions, owing to the high altitudes and harsh weather conditions.
Bilawal said, “We want to send India a clear message […] all Pakistanis, the residents of GB and Azad Kashmir are united in the struggle for our rights.” He contended that “unable to digest the defeat” by Pakistan in May 2025, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has “adopted the Israeli model”.
He asserted: “And today, I want to tell Modi while standing in GB: we know what your conspiracy is. We know what you want to do in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan through Afghanistan.
“We know that your dirty eye is looking towards my beloved Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Kashmir. But we […] want to tell you that your conspiracy will fail.”
The PPP chairman announced that his party will have the same manifesto based on the rights to governance, property and employment for the upcoming AJK elections.
“I want to tell the future generations that I admit that the way Pakistan has been running GB and Azad Kashmir since 1947, that attitude and status quo cannot continue in 2026,” he said.
Bilawal urged the people of AJK to use their “political weapon of [the right to] vote”.
Referring to the PTI’s decision to boycott the AJK elections, Bilawal said he was “deeply upset that some political parties announced they will not take part in the elections”.