Ex-CJP Nasirul Mulk is consensus caretaker PM

ISLAMABAD: Former chief justice of Pakistan Justice (R) Nasirul Mulk was named caretaker prime minister on Monday to hold free, fair and transparent elections in the country scheduled on July 25.

The caretaker prime minister is expected to take oath of the office on Friday, June 1, following the completion of constitutional tenure of the present government. The consensus was reached between Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah in a meeting during which Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq played a vital role to break the deadlock on the name of caretaker prime minister.

This was the sixth meeting between the two, with the previous five ending in a deadlock.

“Justice (R) Nasirul Mulk will take reigns as caretaker premier,” said Khursheed Shah while addressing a press conference along with Prime Minister Abbasi and Speaker Ayaz Sadiq. The prime minister had asked the opposition leader to announce the name of Justice (R) Nasirul Mulk.

Prime Minister Abbasi said consensus on the name of the caretaker prime minister is a milestone in the journey of democracy in the country.

“The decision to pick a consensus personality was not easy one, but finally we have been able to nominate a person against whom no one can point an accusing finger,” he said.

The premier thanked the NA speaker for facilitating the process "in a constitutional manner" and for playing a role in developing a consensus.

Khursheed Shah said it was a historic day as there were speculations that politicians and the Parliament were not capable of taking decisions on their own.

“All those considered during consultative process were respectable and credible names but Nasirul Mulk has been chosen on merit,” he said.

He hoped that the consensus nominee would give free and fair elections to the country. “"We are happy that the government was able to complete its five-year term," he said.

Khursheed said Nasirul Mulk played a historic role in the judiciary when he was a the government had suggested the names of Nasirul Mulk, retired Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani -- also a former chief justice -- and former State Bank governor Dr Shamshad Akhtar, while the PPP had said, in the event that the matter went to a parliamentary committee, that it would propose the names of former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Zaka Ashraf and former ambassador to the United States Jalil Abbas Jilani.

In 2015, Nasirul Mulk put his gavel away after a 13-month long stint as head of the country’s superior judiciary. During his short tenure, Nasirul Mulk has given four historical judgments, which have strengthened democracy in the country. Senior lawyers appreciated his role during the 2014 sit-ins by the PAT and PTI on Islamabad’s Constitution Avenue.

Justice Nasirul Mulk was also heading the bench that had rejected the plea to disqualify Nawaz Sharif for lying on the floor of the National Assembly. He was also head of Judicial Commission that probed the PTI’s rigging allegations in the 2013 elections. The commission had given multiple recommendations to the Election Commission Pakistan (ECP) for ensuring fair and transparent elections. Justice Mulk, along with two other fellow judges, accepted the task of probing rigging claims in the last general elections. All the major parties praised his conduct during the proceedings of the inquiry commission. After spending 86 days, Justice Mulk rejected the rigging allegations.

Justice (R) Nasirul Mulk was born on August 17, 1950 in Mingora, Swat. He completed his degree of Bar-at-Law from Inner Temple London and was called to the Bar in 1977. His father, Kamran Khan, was a businessman known for his philanthropic work in Swat. Mulk is fond of playing golf and is often seen taking a walk in the Margalla Hills. The now-retired Mulk practised as an advocate in all fields of law for more than 17 years until his elevation as a judge of the Peshawar High Court (PHC). He remained PHC chief justice for some time before his elevation as a judge of the Supreme Court. When he took oath as the 22nd CJP in 2014, members of the legal fraternity said the appointment would bring honour, dignity and grace.

Meanwhile, the Punjab government and opposition agreed to appoint Nasir Mahmood Khosa as the province's caretaker chief minister.

While speaking to media in Lahore, Opposition Leader in the Punjab Assembly Mahmoodur Rasheed said Khosa's name had been proposed for the position.

Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif later said consensus had been reached on the candidate, who is a former chief secretary. He praised the Khosa's personality.

Nasir Mahmood Khosa is the Alternate Executive Director from Pakistan representing Afghanistan, Algeria, Ghana, Iran, Morocco, Pakistan, and Tunisia. The former bureaucrat was born in Dera Ghazi Khan. He served as a chief secretary in both, Punjab and Balochistan, with his tenure in the former extending to over two years with Shahbaz Sharif as the chief minister. He belongs to the sixth common batch of the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS).

The PTI Chairman Imran Khan congratulated Nasirul Mulk on his appointment as caretaker prime minister.

“Want to congratulate Justice (R) Nasirul Mulk on being appointed caretaker PM,” the PTI chairman tweeted.

The PTI Secretary Information Fawad Chaudhry said Nasirul Mulk was a suitable choice for caretaker PM.

“Justice (R) Nasirul Mulk is a respectable name of the country and is a suitable choice for the slot of caretaker PM,” Fawad said.

The PkMAP Chairman Mahmood Khan Achakzai termed the nomination of Nasirul Mulk as a good omen.

Achakzai said Nasirul Mulk is a man of good character who will conduct clean and transparent elections in the country.