Pakistan: PPP's Sarfaraz Bugti elected unapposed as new CM of Balochistan

The Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) candidate Sarfaraz Bugti has been elected unopposed as the new Chief Minister of the Balochistan province.

Bugti secured 41 votes and will take oath as the Balochistan chief minister on Saturday.

He had stepped down as the caretaker federal interior minister in the interim government to contest the provincial assembly elections on a PPP ticket in the February 8 general elections.

The leader also found support from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

Bugti was not challenged by any opposition figure during the polls as no other candidate filed for nomination for the post till Friday’s deadline.

In Balochistan, the senior Pakistani politician will be faced with tough challenges as the province witnesses frequent terrorist acts and separatist violence. Apart from these, the region is currently undergoing a crisis in the coastal port city of Gwadar and its adjoining areas which have been hit hard by heavy rainfall and flash floods.

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After the February 8 general elections, PPP emerged as the largest party in Balochistan and has formed a coalition government with PML-N and Baloch Awami Party in the province.

Bugti also served as the information minister in Balochistan during the government led by jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party between 2018 and 2022.

ECP announces Presidential election dates

Meanwhile, the Election Commission of Pakistan on Saturday announced the dates of Presidential Elections.

The polls are slated for March 9. According to a notification issued by the poll body, candidates fighting for the post can file their nomination by March 2 with the presiding officers in Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar and Quetta.

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“In pursuance of the provisions contained in paragraphs 1 and 3 of the Second Schedule of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973 read with clauses (3) and (4) of Article 41 of the Constitution, Public Notification for election to the office of the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is hereby issued and in relation thereto the following programme for receipt of nomination papers, scrutiny of nomination papers, withdrawal of candidature, publication of list of validly nominated candidates, retirement and the polling day,” the statement read.

With inputs from agencies