Buzdar provincial government

The Buzdar provincial government was the Government of Punjab, Pakistan led by Chief Minister of Punjab, Sardar Usman Buzdar and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) from 27 August 2018 to 1 April 2022. His cabinet saw many prominent ministers from the First Parvez Elahi provincial government such as Mian Aslam Iqbal, Aleem Khan and Sibtain Khan. The cabinet also saw reshuffles, while Yasmin Rashid, a politician and gynecologist health expert was granted all health portfolios. Hashim Jawan Bakht, a graduate from the McGill University was also made Minister of Finance.^[1]

Buzdar provincial government
Cabinet of Punjab, Pakistan
2018 - 2022
Date formed	27 August 2018
Date dissolved	1 April 2022
People and organisations
Governor	Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar
Chief Minister	Sardar Usman Buzdar
Senior Minister	Aleem Khan[a]
Total no. of members	35
Member parties	Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf   Pakistan Muslim League (Q)
Status in legislature	Punjab Assembly 192 / 371 (52%)
Opposition party	Pakistan Muslim League (N)
Opposition leader	Hamza Shahbaz
History
Election	2018 Punjab provincial election
Legislature term	5 years
Predecessor	Third Shehbaz
Successor	Hamza Shahbaz

History

Inauguration

Provincial elections were held in Punjab on 25 July 2018 to elect 17th Provincial Assembly of the Punjab. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) won 184 out of total 297 direct seats in the Punjab Assembly. The chief minister candidate was announced as Shah Mehmood Qureshi prior to the elections,^[2] though party leader of PTI and prime minister, Imran Khan announced it to be changed to Sardar Usman Buzdar. His nomination surprised many in the PTI and received widespread criticism as he was a lesser known figure.^[3][4][5][6]

On 19 August 2018, he was elected as the chief minister of Punjab. He received 186 votes against his opponent Hamza Shahbaz Sharif who secured 159 votes.^[7] He was sworn in on 20 August 2018.^[8]

After assuming the office as the chief minister of Punjab, Buzdar held consultations with Imran Khan and formed a 23-member cabinet. The 23-member cabinet was sworn in on 27 August 2018.^[9][10] The second part of his cabinet, consisting of 12 provincial ministers was sworn in on 13 September 2018 increasing the size of the cabinet to 35.^[11] Meanwhile Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar was made Governor of Punjab in Buzdar's government on 5 September 2018.^[12]

Major decisions

Despite being criticised upon his oath, Usman Buzdar initiated the construction of universities in many areas,^[13][14][15] major uplift projects primarily in South Punjab, the implementation of the Sehat Insaf Card and Sehat Sahulat Program,^[16][17] additional health card schemes,^[18][19] the inaugurations of stadiums, announcements of universities in many districts, relief packages and legislation in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic,^[20] and additional reforms in other sectors.^[21][22]

Cabinet

	Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf		Pakistan Muslim League (Q)
Other Ministers in the cabinet are not covered. Senior Minister and Chief Minister are written in bold

Punjab Cabinet under Chief Minister Usman Buzdar (2018–2022)[23][24]
Post		Portrait	Minister	Term start	Term end
	Chief Minister of Punjab		Usman Buzdar, MPA	20 August 2018	30 April 2022
	Senior Minister of Punjab, Minister for Food		Abdul Aleem Khan, MPA	13 April 2020	26 November 2021
	Minister for Local Government & Community Development		Mehmood-ur-Rasheed, MPA	27 August 2018	28 March 2022
	Minister for Law & Parliamentary Affairs, Minister for Cooperatives		Muhammad Basharat Raja, MPA	27 August 2018 21 November 2020	1 April 2022 1 April 2022
	Minister for Industries, Commerce & Investment, Minister for Information & Culture		Mian Aslam Iqbal, MPA	27 August 2018 19 July 2019	1 April 2022 2 December 2019
	Minister for Finance		Makhdoom Hashim Jawan Bakht, MPA	27 August 2018	April 2022
	Minister for Primary & Secondary Health, Minister for Specialized Healthcare & Medical Education		Yasmin Rashid, MPA	28 August 2018 28 August 2018	April 2022 April 2022
	Minister for Prisons, Minister for Colonies, Minister for Information & Culture		Fayaz-ul-Hasan Chohan, MPA	3 November 2020 6 July 2019 2 December 2019	April 2022 21 December 2020 2 November 2020
	Minister for Literacy & Non-formal Basic Education		Raja Rashid Hafeez, MPA	27 August 2018	April 2022
	Minister for Mines & Minerals		Hafiz Ammar Yasir, MPA	6 September 2018	18 January 2019
	Minister for Revenue		Malik Muhammad Anwar, MPA	29 August 2018	April 2022
	Minister for Special Education		Muhammad Akhlaq, MPA	13 September 2018	10 April 2022
	Minister for Higher Education, Minister for Punjab Information Technology Board		Yasir Humayun, MPA	27 August 2018 22 July 2019	April 2022 27 March 2022
	Minister for Youth Affairs, Sports, Minister for Tourism		Muhammad Rai Taimoor Khan, MPA	27 August 2018 19 July 2019	10 April 2022 10 April 2022
	Minister for Forestry, Minister for Forestry, Wildlife & Fisheries		Sibtain Khan, MPA	7 January 2020 29 August 2018	1 April 2022 January 2019

The Punjab Assembly under the Buzdar administration in 2018:

  PTI: 179 seats

  PMLN: 164 seats

  PMLQ: 10 seats

  PPP: 7 seats

  PRHP: 1 seat

  IND: 4 seats

  WITHHELD: 6 seats

De-seated Ministers

In February 2019, Minister Aleem Khan was arrested by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) under the Imran Khan government for multiple inquiries, including one involving offshore company Hexam Investment Overseas Ltd, one for owning assets beyond his known sources of income, and inquiries into his questionable business practices related to his housing societies.^[25] The same day, he announced his resignation as Provincial Minister of Punjab for Local Government and Community Development.^[26] The probe was on his housing societies was later closed.^[27][28] In the case of assets beyond means he was given a bail as no evidence proving his guilt was provided.^[29] The Lahore High Court granted bail to Aleem Khan on 13 April 2020. After proving his innocence, he was again appointed to the Provincial Cabinet as the Senior Minister of Punjab and Provincial Minister of Punjab for Food but resigned in November 2021.^[30][31]

In January 2019, Minister Sibtain Khan was arrested by the National Accountability Bureau Lahore due to corruption charges during the tenure of his own PTI government and due to this, he was removed from his post of Provincial Minister of Punjab for Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries. He remained in prison for one year and released on bail in December 2019.

See also

• Usman Buzdar

Notes

1. Only from 2020 to 2021

References

1. "Punjab Assembly | Members - Members' Directory". www.pap.gov.pk. Retrieved 2024-10-13.
2. Ahmed, Shakeel (2018-07-27). "PP-127 defeat shatters Qureshi's dream of becoming Punjab CM". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2024-10-13.
3. "Being taken for a ride". www.pakistantoday.com.pk. 22 August 2018. Retrieved 21 September 2018.
4. Malik, Mansoor (18 August 2018). "PTI Punjab CM choice doesn't sit well with many within party". DAWN.COM. Archived from the original on 18 August 2018. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
5. Javid, Hassan (11 September 2018). "Are Imran Khan's cabinet members selected on merit?". Herald Magazine. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
6. "Punjab CM sparks controversies in his first week in office". The News. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
7. "Punjab Assembly elects Buzdar as chief minister". DAWN.COM. 19 August 2018. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
8. "Sardar Usman Buzdar sworn in as Punjab CM | The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 20 August 2018. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
9. Malik, Mansoor (25 August 2018). "Imran completes consultation with Buzdar for Punjab cabinet". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
10. "Punjab's 23-member cabinet sworn in". www.pakistantoday.com.pk. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
11. "Punjab Cabinet swells to 35 as 12 new ministers take oath | The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 13 September 2018. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
12. "Sarwar sworn in as 37th governor of Punjab". DAWN.COM. 2018-09-06. Retrieved 2024-09-30.
13. "New universities to facilities students in far flung areas: CM Buzdar". Dunya News. 2008-02-14. Retrieved 2024-09-30.
14. Report, Recorder (2021-10-04). "Higher education: Punjab govt decides to complete 197 projects". Brecorder. Retrieved 2024-09-30.
15. "Improving education in Punjab". The Nation. 2020-11-13. Retrieved 2024-09-30.
16. "Over 30mn people will be benefited from Sehat Card: Usman Buzdar". Retrieved 2024-10-02.
17. "Punjab allocates Rs400b for health card programme: CM". The Express Tribune. 2022-01-01. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
18. "CM Punjab Usman Buzdar launches Insaaf Medicine Card". ARY NEWS. 2020-11-22. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
19. Malik, Mansoor (2021-12-14). "Health card in Punjab termed a 'defining moment'". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
20. Malik, Mansoor (2020-03-29). "Punjab unveils Rs10bn relief package for daily-wage earners". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2024-10-13.
21. "Buzdar announces Rs25b uplift projects". The Express Tribune. 2021-03-25. Retrieved 2024-10-13.
22. "How Chief Minister Usman Buzdar changed South Punjab in a year". www.geo.tv. Retrieved 2024-09-30.
23. "Punjab Assembly | About Assembly - Cabinet and Functionaries". 2022-02-12. Archived from the original on 2022-02-12. Retrieved 2024-10-01.
24. "Punjab Assembly | About Assembly - Cabinet and Functionaries". 2018-09-25. Archived from the original on 2018-09-25. Retrieved 2024-10-01.
25. Waqar, Ali (6 February 2019). "Senior minister Aleem Khan taken into custody by NAB Lahore". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
26. "Aleem Khan resigns from ministry: family sources". www.thenews.com.pk. 6 February 2019. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
27. "NAB closes probe into Aleem's housing case". August 2023.
28. "CDA restores Parkview housing scheme's NOC". 6 December 2022.
29. "LHC grants bail to Abdul Aleem Khan in assets case". 15 May 2019.
30. "PM Imran accepts Abdul Aleem Khan's resignation". 26 November 2021.
31. "PTI's Aleem Khan gets bail relief". 15 May 2019.