Punjab witnesses political shake-up

LAHORE: Spokesman for Punjab chief minister Dr Shahbaz Gill has resigned from his post, while Aun Chaudhry, the adviser to Punjab CM, has been removed from the cabinet.

Also, Malik Asad Khokhar, an MPA elected from Lahore in by-election, has been inducted into the Punjab cabinet and he has taken the oath as a minister. Dr Shahbaz Gill tendered his resignation late Thursday just a day before Punjab CM Usman Buzdar was to leave for Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah.

Sources said he was asked to resign by the CM. Later on, a notification was also issued by the provincial government in this regard. “The Chief Minister is pleased to denotify Mr Shahbaz Gill as Official Spokesperson of the Chief Minister with immediate effect,” said the notification, issued by Dr Shoaib Akbar, principal secretary to the chief minister.

Shahbaz Gill and Aun Chaudhry have been removed within days after Prime Minister Imran Khan visited Lahore and chaired a cabinet meeting. This is noteworthy that the last two visits of Prime Minister Imran Khan to Lahore have been very significant as after the previous tour, the cabinet was reshuffled, and after the current visit, a noted figure of the Punjab government, Shahbaz Gill, and once known as Imran’s blue eyed, Aun Chaudhry, were removed from their positions.

Sources said Dr Gill has been under massive criticism by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders for multiple reasons. Just a couple of days ago, Gill, while addressing a press conference, said that those who disliked CMUsman Buzdar could quit the PTI. He had to face severe criticism due to these remarks. He had also been target of criticism by the Punjab cabinet members in their private meetings due to his alleged self-projection.

They believed that Dr Gill, instead of highlighting the achievements of the PTI government and the Punjab chief minister, he was busy in his own projection before the media. On most occasions, he was seen as addressing the press conferences in the presence of ministers, who were seen sitting on his right and left. This eventually gave rise to the feeling of resentment against ministers, who, being the head of their respective departments, expressed displeasure when someone else was speaking on their behalf before the media.

He was also criticised over a controversial notification of inspecting the government departments, which was also heavily disliked within the government circles. However, the government claimed that no such notification was issued.

Besides, his relationship with and behaviour towards the government officials also brought him under criticism and he was slammed for embarrassing the government on different occasions. In an incident that occurred in the office of DGPR, he had an exchange of heated arguments with the then DG Amjad Bhatti. A scuffle was about to be broken out when other officials present intervened and the then Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan took notice of it later.

During the last visit of Prime Minister Imran Khan to Lahore, Dr Gill was not seen anywhere in the press conference addressed by the Punjab CM and other high-ups of the provincial government. It also raised many questions about his future course with the incumbent administration.

Eventually, he resigned from his office on Thursday. The News tried to contact Dr Shahbaz Gill, but he didn’t respond. In another development related to the Punjab government, Aun Chaudhry, the adviser to Punjab CM, was removed from his office. He was appointed an advisor last year and he was considered among circles close to Premier Imran Khan. He has been an advisor with no office and he seldom showed any performance. His bother, Amin Chaudhry, is also a sitting MPA from Lahore.

Meanwhile, in a ceremony held at Governor’s House, Malik Asad Khokhar, the PTI MPA elected in a by-poll from PP-168, took oath as a provincial minister.