Journalist Syed Mohsin Raza Naqvi took oath as the caretaker chief minister of Punjab late on Sunday night.
Punjab Governor Muhammad Balighur Rehman administered the oath of office to Naqvi during a simple ceremony at the Punjab Governor House in Lahore.
The ceremony was attended by senior bureaucrats and close members of his family.
It is expected that talks on forming an interim cabinet of Punjab are expected to start tomorrow. Sources suggest that former bureaucrats, industrialists and technocrats will be included in the interirm government.
Earlier on Sunday evening, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had named Syed Mohsin Raza Naqvi as the caretaker chief minister of Punjab.
The announcement was made by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja after an hour-long meeting at the commission on Sunday.
The ECP had until 10 pm later tonight to finalize a name but it came to an agreement on the names with an hour to spare.
A notification in this regard was also issued which stated that the decision was taken after “detailed deliberations”.
The notice was sent to the Punjab Governor Balighur Rehman and other relevant offices.
He is expected to take oath of office later today at the Punjab Governor House.
The matter had been sent to the electoral body under Clause 3 of Article 224-A of the Constitution to pick a name from the nominated candidates.
Article 224-A Resolution by Committee or Election Commission
(2) In case a Chief Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in the outgoing Provincial Assembly do not agree on any person to be appointed as the care-taker Chief Minister, within three days of the dissolution of that Assembly, they shall forward two nominees each to a Committee to be immediately constituted by the Speaker of the Provincial Assembly, comprising six members of the outgoing Provincial Assembly having equal representation from the Treasury and the Opposition, to be nominated by the Chief Minister and the Leader of the Opposition respectively.
(3) The Committee constituted under clause (1) or (2) shall finalize the name of the care-taker Prime Minister or care-taker Chief Minister, as the case may be, within three days of the referral of the matter to it:
Provided that in case of inability of the Committee to decide the matter in the aforesaid period, the names of the nominees shall be referred to the Election Commission of Pakistan for final decision within two days.
(4) The incumbent Prime Minister and the incumbent Chief Minister shall continue to hold office till appointment of the care-taker Prime Minister and the care-taker Chief Minister, as the case may be.
Nominees
Following the dissolution of the assembly the coalition of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) had put forward the names of Sardar Ahmad Nawaz Sukhera and Naveed Akram Cheema through Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi.
Leader of the Opposition in Punjab Assembly Hamza Shahbaz had proposed the names of Syed Mohsin Raza Naqvi and Ahad Raza Cheema.
While today (Sunday) is the last day for the electoral body to choose a name for the caretaker chief minister.
What happens to Ch Parvez Elahi
After Naqvi was named, Chaudhry Parvez Elahi, who spent just a few months as Punjab’s chief minister, has lost his status as chief minister.
He continued to holding the position of chief minister, without a cabinet or a parliament after the assembly was dissolved on January 14 following his advice to the governor.
Under the law, Elahi could do so until the formal caretaker chief minister was announced.
