PM Kakar nominates Ishaq Dar as leader of house in senate

ISLAMABAD: Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has nominated PML-N leader Ishaq Dar as Leader of the House in Senate, ARY News reported citing sources.

According to sources, Senator Saleem Mandviwalla has been appointed as the Chief Whip Senate, his designation will be equal to that of the State Minister.

Sources revealed that Pakistan People Party (PPP) has raised objections to the nomination of PML-N leader Ishaq Dar.

On October 31, Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani claimed that he had received consent from Caretaker Prime Minister to “retain Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Ishaq Dar as Leader of the House”.

During a special session of Upper House of Parliament, an objection was raised against the use of the title of Leader of the House by Ishaq Dar.

PPP leader Shahadat Awan asked why the PML-N Senator had been labelled as the leader of the house on the agenda even though the elected government did not exist.

Responding to the query, Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani said he had received consent from Caretaker Prime Minister (PM) Anwaarul Haq Kakar that Ishaq Dar would continue as the leader of the house.

It is pertinent to mention here that Ishaq Dar was appointed as leader of the house in the Senate by the then Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Dar was sworn in as a senator after he had returned to the country after a five-year-long ‘self-exile’. Following this, he was sworn in as the new finance minister. The PML-N leader had left the country in 2017 while standing trial in a corruption reference.