Imran names ex-CJP Gulzar for post of caretaker PM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has nominated former chief justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmad, who retired this year on Feb 1, for the post of caretaker premier.

PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry made this announcement on his Twitter account. He said in reply to the president’s letter and after consulting the PTI core committee and its approval, Imran Khan had proposed the name of former CJP Gulzar Ahmad for the slot of caretaker prime minister.

President Dr Arif Alvi, meanwhile, sent a letter to incumbent the prime minister and Leader of the Opposition in the outgoing National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif to propose a name for a caretaker prime minister.

The letter was written under Article 224 A (1) of the Constitution in the wake of the dissolution of the National Assembly on Sunday. According to the letter, in case the prime minister and the leader of the opposition in the outgoing National Assembly do not agree on any person to be appointed as the caretaker prime minister within three days of the dissolution of the National Assembly, they shall forward two nominees each to a committee to be immediately constituted by the speaker of the National Assembly.

The committee shall comprise eight members of the outgoing National Assembly or the Senate, or both, having equal representation from the Treasury and the Opposition, to be nominated by the prime minister and the leader of the opposition, respectively, in pursuance of Article 224-A(1) of the Constitution.

The letter says Imran Khan would continue to hold the office of the prime minister till the appointment of the caretaker under Article 224A(4) of the Constitution. Justice (retd) Gulzar Ahmed was the 27th chief justice of Pakistan and he belonged to Karachi. Justice Gulzar had retired on February 01, 2022.

However, the question arises whether he could hold any public office without completing the two-year term after his retirement. The former attorney general, Ashtar Ausaf, was of the view that it was not possible under the law to assign the office of caretaker prime minister to the former CJP. In terms of law, the post of the caretaker prime minister is the “office of profit.”

The former AGP said that the ex-CJP could not take the office of the profit for two years, adding, “Even if he chooses to forfeit the salary, the law will still be applicable.”