Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif Names Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar As His Deputy In First Appointment Since 2012

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has been appointed as the Deputy Prime Minister, a position that has been vacant for over a decade.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar was appointed as the deputy prime minister on Sunday. A notification was issued to announce the appointment made by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif “with immediate effect and until further orders”, Dawn reported. This appointment marks the reinstatement of the deputy prime minister position, which had been vacant since June 2012 when Chaudhry Pervez Elahi held the role under the PML-Q administration.

The announcement came while both Prime Minister Sharif and Foreign Minister Dar were in Saudi Arabia attending a World Economic Forum's event. The specific duties Dar will undertake as Deputy Prime Minister remain unclear, given that traditionally, the prime minister holds centralized authority as the head of the government.

Dar's proximity to former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is notable due to familial ties between the two families, with Dar's son being the son-in-law of the elder Sharif. He has previously served as the finance minister in two administrations and was considered the party's economic troubleshooter, assuming the finance minister role in the previous Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) coalition government.

Ishaq Dar's political career spans several key ministerial positions, notably in commerce, investment, and finance. He previously served as the federal minister for commerce and investment during Nawaz Sharif's government from 1997 to 1999. Additionally, he held the finance portfolio twice, first in 1998-99 and then in 2008, according to Dawn.

Before assuming federal ministerial roles, Dar held the position of minister of state/chief executive of the Pakistan Investment Board (PIB) from 1992 to 1993. 

Dar also served as finance minister in Nawaz Sharif's government in 2013 and was subsequently reappointed from September 2022 to August 2023.

Ishaq Dar, Seen As PML-N's Trusted Finance Expert, Handed Foreign Affairs In Surprise Move

Dar's recent appointment as the foreign minister raised eyebrows, particularly considering his earlier tipped candidacy for the chairmanship of the Senate. However, his bid for the Senate chairmanship fell through after the PML-N reached an agreement with the Bilawal Bhutto Zardari-led Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), conceding the positions of president and Senate chairman to the latter. 

This political maneuvering between the PML-N and the PPP paved the way for a coalition government, despite the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-backed independents securing a majority in the National Assembly. The appointment of a Deputy Prime Minister is not unprecedented, with Chaudhry Parvez Elahi serving in the role during the tenure of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) from June 25, 2012, to June 29, 2013. Elahi's position at that time was largely symbolic, serving as a reward for his support of the PPP government.

Currently, Elahi is the president of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and is facing corruption allegations, resulting in his incarceration. Meanwhile, Dar's coveted finance portfolio was handed over to Muhammad Aurangzeb.

PPP leader Faisal Karim Kundi stated that his party had no objections to Ishaq Dar's appointment as deputy premier, mentioning that previous PPP governments had also appointed deputy PMs.

“It is the prime minister’s prerogative […] if the Shehbaz Sharif wanted to appoint Ishaq Dar and he did, it’s his prerogative. It is his cabinet,” Kundi told Hum News, as reported by Dawn.

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