Mir Ghazanfar tipped as new GB governor

Ahmad Hassan

ISLAMABAD: The ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) will take the full control of the Gilgit-Baltistan government when it will have its own governor who would take oath after Eidul Fitr as Mir Ghazanafar has been tipped for the slot, informed sources have revealed.

The incumbent GB governor and Federal Minister for States, Kashmir Affairs and Northern Areas Chaudhry Barjees Tahir was appointed before general elections.

It may be mentioned that he requested Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to relieve him of additional responsibility soon after the polls on June 7 so that transition of power from the interim government to elected government would be completed.

The PM, the sources said, asked the minister to carry on till the time a new governor was named and sworn in. The induction of the federal minister through an ordinance as the GB governor was though with a special purpose, was criticised by the opponents who alleged it was pre-poll rigging as the governor, being a federal minister, would manipulate the upcoming polls in favour of the PML-N. The objective was performed by him very well as the PML-N emerged as the single largest party by securing 24 seats leaving only nine MLAs in the opposition.

The governor’s post under parliamentary system is though ceremonial which even becomes more toothless in the case of GB but it still holds traditional prestige and status. Mir Ghazanfar Ali Khan, the Mir of Hunza, is being tipped as the new governor of Gilgit-Baltistan to complete the process of constitutional transfer of power following the elections of 33-member GB Assembly and taking oath of PML-N Chief Minister Hafiz Hafeezur Rehman. Source: The News