KP Governor Haji Ghulam Ali signs summary of Justice (retd) Arshad Hussain Shah’s appointment as new caretaker CM of the province

PESHAWAR, Nov 12 (SABAH): Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Haji Ghulam Ali on Sunday signed the summary of Justice (retd) Arshad Hussain Shah’s appointment as the new caretaker chief minister of the province.

The development comes after Muhammad Azam Khan — who was the caretaker chief minister — passed away after suffering from a heart attack a day earlier.

Justice (retd) Arshad Hussain Shah was on Sunday appointed as the caretaker chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a day after ex-CM Azam Khan passed away following a brief illness.

The development comes after former CM Mahmood Khan, who was a constitutional consultee in the initial appointment of the caretaker chief minister, met opposition leader Akram Khan Durrani for consultation on the appointment of the new interim chief executive for KP.

A notification issued after the meeting said Durrani and Mahmood had agreed to appoint Shah as the caretaker CM under clause 1(A) of Article 224 of the Constitution.

The same was subsequently sent to the KP governor, who later approved it.

Shah was appointed as the law minister in former CM Azam Khan’s cabinet earlier this year. Previously, he also served as the chief justice of Gilgit-Baltistan.

On Saturday, KP Governor Haji Ghulam Ali had sent a letter to Mahmood and Durrani, inviting them to begin the consultation process under Article 224(1A) of the Constitution for the next chief minister’s appointment. In separate letters, the governor had said he was under constitutional obligation to call upon them. He added that as per the Constitution, the process should be completed in three days.

Muhammad Azam Khan was appointed as the caretaker chief minister in January this year following the dissolution of the provincial assembly by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led government.

Following his demise, former KP CM Mahmood Khan and opposition leader Akram Khan Durrani held a consultative meeting to discuss the appointment of the new provincial chief executive.

The two leaders finalised Shah’s name and sent the summary to the governor for approval.

Hailing from Abbottabad, Shah was serving as the law minister in former CM Muhammad Azam Khan’s cabinet. Before joining the cabinet he had also served as the chief justice of the Gilgit Baltistan from 2019-2022.

Ahead of their meeting, Durrani said that KP had plunged into a crisis after Azam’s death. He added that the matter of appointment will be resolved today.

“I will discuss the appointment of interim CM with preparation. I will also convince Mahmood Khan as no one rejects my suggestions,” he had said.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Zahir Khan Toru said that the party will not accept the new chief minister whose appointment is decided by the former CM and opposition leader.

Toru said that they will move the court if the new chief minister’s appointment is done by Khan and Durrani. He further stressed that the matter should be solved constitutionally, saying that the governor should not make his formulas.

“The new CM chosen by Mahmood Khan, Ghulam Ali and Akram Khan Durrani will be a political one,” he said, adding that a level playing field is not expected from the chosen CM.