PM Shehbaz irked by President Alvi’s letter seeking caretaker PM’s name

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has expressed annoyance over a letter, sent by President Dr Arif Alvi, asking the premier and Opposition Leader in outgoing National Assembly (NA) Raja Riaz to propose a name for caretaker PM by tomorrow (August 12), ARY News reported on Friday.

Talking to journalists in Islamabad, the prime minister said that a decision related to appointment of caretaker PM will be taken by tomorrow. “What was the hurry that President Alvi sent the letter,” he said, expressing annoyance over the move.

“The President should have read the Constitution before writing the letter as I have 8 full days,” Shehbaz Sharif said, adding: “Until the caretaker premier is appointed, I am the prime minister.”

“If a decision is not taken in three days, the parliamentary committee will take a decision in three days and if the parliamentary committee could not decide, the Election Commission of Pakistan will look into the matter,” he pointed out.

Shehbaz Sharif further said that he would consult with the allied parties tonight as a meeting has been summoned in this regard.

Earlier in the day, President Dr Arif Alvi asked Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Raja Riaz to propose a name for appointment of caretaker PM by tomorrow (August 12).

In the letter, President Alvi said under Article 224A of Constitution, PM Shehbaz and Raja Riaz were required to propose name of a person for appointment of caretaker prime minister within three days of dissolution of National Assembly.

It is pertinent to mention here that PM Shehbaz and opposition leader Raja Riaz began meetings to select a candidate for the interim premier after the National Assembly (NA) stood dissolved on August 9.

Both leaders are expected to meet again today for another round of deliberations.

Read More: Shehbaz Sharif writes to Raja Riaz for deliberations on caretaker PM

The prime minister and the opposition leader have to reach to a consensus for the top office of the interim setup within a span of three days. If they fail to reach a decision the matter will be decided by a parliamentary body within next three days, if the deadlock persists, the election commission will announce the name of caretaker prime minister in next two days.

Who will be Caretaker PM?

Who will be the Caretaker PM, who will lead the country to the upcoming election, is a question running rumor mills across the country. Whether the caretaker prime minister will be a bureaucrat or a politician, is likely to be decided in the upcoming meeting of PM Shehbaz Sharif and opposition leader Raja Riaz.

According to government sources, a bureaucrat has been a frontrunner in the caretaker prime minister’s race.

The names of Ishaq Dar, Hafeez Sheikh and Justice Shakeel Baloch among others surfaced for the interim premier’s slot. The name of Hafeez Sheikh, a former finance minister of Pakistan also being taken for a key portfolio in the upcoming caretaker setup.

Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) pitched former foreign secretary Jalil Abbas Jilani’s name for the caretaker Prime Minister slot yesterday. According to sources, PPP had suggested Jalil Abbas Jilani’s name for the caretaker PM during a meeting between former president Asif Zardari and PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif.

Sources further said that Nawaz Sharif had no objection to Jilani’s name for the caretaker PM slot. Jilani is a cousin of PPP stalwart Yousaf Raza Gillani.