Gilgit-Baltistan has a new government, and for a few hours Gilgit looked like a region entering a great democratic transition: roads closed, traffic diverted, ordinary people trapped in narrow lanes, and protocol moving with the confidence of permanent power. Somewhere, even water from fire-tankers was reportedly used to wash the road. In a region already facing climate disasters, energy shortages and weak emergency systems, this was not merely administrative preparation. It was political theatre with an unintended joke: the machinery meant for crisis response was helping polish the path of power.

The PPP has finally formed government after a post-election arithmetic lesson that kept everyone entertained and mildly worried. Independents first discovered the ideological depth of the IPP, a party that had won no general seat on its own in G-B but suddenly became relevant through freshly elected independents. The PML-N then found a creative arrangement: support the PPP, take constitutional space and sit in........

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