Punjab, KP cabinets announced

ISLAMABAD: The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Sunday announced 23-member Punjab and 15-member Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinets after Prime Minister Imran Khan held marathon consultation with the chief ministers of respective provinces and other senior leaders.

The PTI’s central media department released a list of ministers and those without ministerial portfolios.

Aleem Khan, who was appointed senior minister, will also serve as local government and community development minister.

Mian Aslam Iqbal has been made the minister for industries and commerce. Mian Mahmoodur Rasheed, who served as the opposition leader in the Punjab Assembly, will be minister for housing, urban development and public health engineering.

Dr Yasmin Rashid has been made minister for primary and secondary health, specialised healthcare and medication education.

Hafiz Mumtaz Ahmed will serve as minister for excise and taxation. Fayyazul Hassan Chohan has been appointed minister for information and culture, while Yasir Humayun will serve as the higher education and tourism development minister.

Raja Basharat has been given the Ministry of Law and Parliamentary Affairs while Raja Rashid Hafeez has been made minister for revenue. Mohsin Leghari will serve as the irrigation minister, Taimoor Khan as minister for youth and sports, Murad Ross as minister for school education and Ansar Majeed as minister for labour and manpower.

As many as eight cabinet ministers have been notified without portfolio. They are M Sibtain Khan, Sardar Asif Nakai, Hafiz Ammar Yasir, Malik Nauman Langrial, Hasnain Dareshak, Malik Muhammad Anar, Ch. Zaheeruddin and Hashim Dogar.

Makhdoom Hashim will serve as the new finance minister while Samiullah Chaudhry has been given the ministry of food. The prime minister interviewed over 30 aspirants at his Banigala residence where Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar and nominated Governor Chaudhry Sarwar were also present among others.

During his interaction with the party’s legislators, Imran called for observing austerity and insisted that he wanted additional cars for sitting ministers be sold out. The PTI media department also issued the list of 15 ministers of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet.

The ministers and their portfolios are Muhammad Atif Khan (Senior Minister and Tourism), Shehram Khan Tarakai (Minister for Local Minister), Taimoor Khan Jhagra (Finance Minister), Syed Muhammad Ishtiaq (Forest Minister), Haji Qalandar Khan (Minister for Food), Akbar Ayub Khan (Minister without portfolio), Shakeel Ahmed Khan (Revenue Minister), Muhibullah Khan (Agriculture Minister), Dr. Amjad Ali (Minister for Mineral Development), Ziaullah Khan Bangash (Adviser to the CM), Sultan Muhammad Khan (Law Minister), Dr. Hasham Inamullah Khan (Health Minister), Abdul Kareem (Adviser to the CM for Industry), Shah Muhammad Khan (Special Assistant to the CM on Transport), and Kamran Khan Bangash (Minister for Information Technology.