Punjab Minister Azma Bukhari accuses PPP of rigging Kashmir election, slams Zardari birthday rally

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari alleged that the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) was engaged in vote‑rigging during the recent Azad Jammu and Kashmir assembly election. She claimed that PPP activists were tampering with ballots, that candidates disappeared, and that election materials were mishandled, suggesting the party was attempting to turn Kashmir into a province-like entity under its influence.

Bukhari also criticised the PPP for organising a birthday rally for former President Asif Ali Zardari at Minar‑e‑Pakistan, describing the event as an empty gathering with thousands of chairs for only a few hundred participants. She accused the party of focusing more on attacking the Punjab government than on addressing public concerns, and called for accountability for those who advised the rally.

The statements highlight growing tension between the provincial government in Punjab and the PPP over electoral conduct in Kashmir and political events in Lahore.