Pakistan: Nawaz's “kitchen cabinet” : Punjab governor may be shown the door

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The Punjab governor is likely to be replaced soon as the incumbent has reportedly developed differences with the Sharifs.

Punjab Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar had quite a “debriefing” at the hands of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif during the meeting of the two on Tuesday, it has been learnt. The meeting was held at the Prime Minister’s House and is a crucial development in the wake of reported differences of the governor with the Sharif brothers. According to sources, the “kitchen cabinet” of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has convinced the premier that incumbent Punjab Governor Muhammad Sarwar has close links with the protesting party Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) and that he had been instrumental in setting the stage against the PML-N government. One of the top premier agencies of the country has also filed a secret report against the Punjab governor on his close links with some supporters of Tahirul-Qadri, it has been learnt.

Sources said the premier however, asked the governor to clear his position on the allegations. The governor was considered one of the closest aides of Sharifs. He helped them greatly to win the PML-N in the general elections of 2013 in some districts of central Punjab. The PML-N government is all set to bring a new face in the Governor’s House, sources said, adding that Nawaz Sharif has finalised his choice for the new governor, but it has not been revealed as yet. “Only members of the kitchen cabinet know who the future Punjab governor would be,” a senior PML-N leader said. A senior Prime Minister’s House official said there is no decision as yet on having the incumbent governor Punjab changed.

“He met the premier to discuss the official matters regarding Punjab,” the official claimed. Meanwhile, the prime minister also met MNAs Sajid Mehdi (Vehari), Muhammad Khan Daha (Khanewal) and Chaudhry Mahmood Bashir Virk (Gujranwala), who separately called on him. Matters regarding infrastructure development and provision of clean drinking water in their constituencies came under discussion. Sarwar is a Pakistan-born British businessman/politician who surrendered his British citizenship after being nominated as the Punjab governor by PM Nawaz Sharif. Sarwar remained a British Labour Party politician who was elected Member of Parliament (MP) in Glasgow from 1997 to 2010, first for Glasgow Govan and then from 2005 for Glasgow Central. Sarwar has the distinction of being the first ever British Muslim MP. He made history in the British parliament when he became the first MP to swear the Oath of Allegiance on the holy Quran.