Pakistan on Saturday chose a care-taker Prime Minister to take the troubled country through the upcoming elections. Anwaar-ul-haq Kakar, a little known first time senator from Baluchistan was granted the crown as the care-taker Prime Minister of Pakistan.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif dissolved the parliament last week as its five-year term came to an end. Usually, such a step is a formality and a general election would typically have to be held within 90 days.
Kakar was confirmed by President Arif Alvi as the choice of the outgoing coalition government, led by Shehbaz Sharif, and opposition leader Raja Riaz Ahmad.
Pakistan has been wracked by political and economic instability for months, with Imran Khan, the country’s most popular politician in jail.
Notably, Kakar ‘s constituency Baluchistan is the least populated and least developed province among the four but the largest in area.
Here are ten things to know about Anwaar-ul-haq Kakar
-Anwaar-ul-haq Kakar was chosen following a second round of meetings between incumbent Prime Minister Shabaz Sharif and opposition leader Raja Riaz.
-Kakar is comparatively new in the political field. He has represented the Baluschistan province in the senate since 2018 as an independent candidate
-Kakar co-launched a new political party Balochistan Awami Party (BAP). It has faced allegation of having support of The Establishment but they have denied any involvement in politics.
-Kakar, 52, will lead Pakistan through to general and provincial elections due by November
-Beside political activism, Kakar is also involved with various think-tanks formulating Pakistan’s foreign policy.
-Kakar is fluent in Pashto, Urdu, Persian, English, Balochi, and Brahvi.
-Kakar also dons an academic hat. He is on the visiting faculty of Command and Staff College, Quetta and National Defence University, Islamabad where Kakar delivers lecture on International Relations.
-Anwar ul Haq belongs to Kakar tribe of Pashtuns who are primarily scattered across Northern Balochistan.
-Kakar is a little known first time senator in Pakistan
-Political analyst Hasan Askari Rizvi told media outlet AFP that Kakar “has a limited political career and not much weight in Pakistani politics”, but that could work in his favour.
(With agency inputs)
Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates & Live Business News.
Updated: 12 Aug 2023, 08:06 PM IST