PML-N Reviews Its Party Constitution for Gender Equality and Social Inclusion in Islamabad Consultation

Aurat Foundation held an intra-party consultation with the Pakistan Muslim League (N) on 24 September 2026 at the Marriott Hotel, Islamabad, under the EU-supported Pakistan Women Leaders project, a joint initiative of UNDP and UN Women. The consultation brought together 52 participants, including women parliamentarians, senior party leadership, office-bearers and representatives of youth, religious and ethnic minorities, and persons with disabilities.

In Consultation, PML-N senior leadership participated, including Ms. Nuzhat Aamir Sadiq, MNA, Central President, Women Wing (PML-N), and Chairperson, Standing Committee on Government Assurances, Syeda Nosheen Iftikhar, MNA, Provincial President, PML-N Punjab, and President of the Young Parliamentarians Forum, Ms. Tahira Aurangzeb, MNA, Member, Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat, Climate Change and Environmental Coordination, Ms. Asia Naz Tanoli, MNA, Member, Human Rights, Information and Broadcasting, Religious Affairs and Inter-Faith Harmony Committees, including relevant sub-committees, Ms. Farah Naz Akbar, Parliamentary Secretary at the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training and  National Heritage and Culture Division, Ms. Zahra Wadood Fatemi, MNA; Mr. Anjum Aqeel Khan, MNA and President, PML-N Secretariat, Raja Osama Sarwar, MNA; Ms. Huma Akhtar Chughtai, MNA; Ms. Tamkeen Akhtar Niazi, MNA; Ms. Shazia Rizwan, MPA, Parliamentary Secretary for Information and Culture, Government of Punjab, and Member, Board of Directors, PWPP,  Ms. Asma Naz Abbasi, MPA, Parliamentary Secretary for Health & Population and President, PML-N Women’s Wing, PP-17 Rawalpindi; Ms. Tahseen Fawad, MPA, President, PML-N Women’s Wing, PP-19 Rawalpindi, Ms. Farzana Kausar; Ms. Robina Tahseen, Senior Vice President, PML-N Rawalpindi Division, Ms. Lubna Rehan Pirzada, Former MPA, Punjab Assembly, and Secretary Information, PML-N City Women’s Wing, Rawalpindi, Ms. Shaista Tabsum, Advocate, Assistant Attorney General and President, Women Lawyers Wing, Islamabad; Ms. Samina Arif, Digital Media Wing; and other party office-bearers representing PWD, religious monitories and youth wings.

The consultation reviewed the 167-Article PML-N Constitution through a Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) lens, identifying gaps and opportunities to strengthen inclusive participation, internal democracy and women’s meaningful engagement in party decision-making.

Ms. Nuzhat Aamir Sadiq, MNA, Central President, PML-N Women’s Wing, welcomed the consultation and highlighted the important contribution of women to political processes. She emphasised the need to strengthen the linkages between the Women’s Wing and mainstream party structures and to ensure that women have meaningful opportunities to participate in organisational decision-making.

Mr. Qasim Janjua, Programme Advisor, Elections and Democratic Space, PLEDGE, UNDP Pakistan, outlined the objectives of the EU-supported project and highlighted the importance of inclusive democratic processes and meaningful participation of underrepresented groups. He noted that findings from the consultations would inform party-specific Codes of Conduct and GESI commitments, supported by international and regional good practices.

Syeda Nosheen Iftikhar, MNA, Provincial President PML-N Punjab, stressed the need to move beyond minimum legal requirements for women’s representation and work towards greater participation of women in party structures, decision-making bodies and electoral contests. She advocated progressively increasing women’s representation, including 20–30 percent in elected positions, and called for concrete follow-up to the consultation.

Ms. Tahira Aurangzeb, MNA, emphasised the role of local government as the “nursery of democracy” and highlighted the importance of increasing women’s participation at the grassroots level as a pathway to political leadership and decision-making.

Mr. Anjum Aqeel Khan, MNA and President, PML-N Secretariat, called for greater representation of women in the Party’s internal decision-making forums, leadership bodies and organisational structures to strengthen their role in shaping party policies and priorities.

Mr. Naeem Ahmed Mirza, Executive Director, Aurat Foundation, underscored that women’s rights are an integral part of human rights and that women’s meaningful political participation is essential for inclusive democratic governance. He called for translating constitutional commitments into effective organisational practices and strengthening engagement between political parties and civil society.

Ms. Asia Naz Tanoli, MNA, emphasised equal citizenship for members of minority communities and called for their appropriate representation in party organisational and decision-making structures so that their perspectives and priorities are reflected in party decisions.

Ms. Huma Akhtar Chughtai, MNA, highlighted the importance of meaningful representation of persons with disabilities in the Central Working Committee and other key party forums.

Ms. Tamkeen Akhtar Niazi, MNA, called for clear, transparent and merit-based criteria for the allocation of reserved seats and award of party tickets for both reserved and general seats.

Ms. Shazia Rizwan, MPA, emphasised the need for clear and publicly communicated criteria for awarding party tickets, including political experience, organisational contribution, constituency engagement, leadership capacity and commitment to party principles.

Ms. Asma Naz Abbasi, MPA, proposed a financial support mechanism for women candidates, particularly those with limited personal resources, to reduce financial barriers to electoral participation.

Ms. Tahseen Fawad, MPA, highlighted the financial challenges faced by women seeking party tickets for general seats and called for stronger monitoring of campaign expenditure and enforcement of election-finance provisions.

Ms. Lubna Rehan Pirzada, Former MPA, called for structured mentoring, leadership development and capacity-building opportunities for women party workers. She also proposed regular meetings between senior leadership and grassroots workers, with issues documented and followed up through party structures.

Mr. Ali Imran, Parliamentary Expert, presented the GESI analysis of the PML-N Constitution, identifying key opportunities to strengthen representation in decision-making bodies, link specialised wings with mainstream structures, improve candidate selection, create leadership pathways for underrepresented groups, and strengthen GESI monitoring and accountability.

Ms. Mumtaz Mughal, Director Programmes, Aurat Foundation, highlighted the consultation as an opportunity to identify practical measures for strengthening inclusivity within political parties and expressed the expectation that the process would contribute to more representative, inclusive and responsive political institutions.

The consultation forms part of Aurat Foundation and UNDP’s broader engagement with political parties to promote inclusive intra-party democracy, women’s political leadership and accountable political institutions. The findings will contribute to the development of party-specific GESI commitments and Codes of Conduct.