Ishaq Dar Named Deputy Prime Minister of Pakistan.
In a major political development, veteran politician Ishaq Dar has been appointed Deputy Prime Minister of Pakistan. According to a notification issued by the Cabinet Division, PM Shehbaz Sharif approved the position for Dar “with immediate effect.”
A chartered accountant by profession, the 73-year-old Dar belongs to PM Sharif’s ruling PML-N party. He is an economic expert and has held the finance portfolio four times under two separate governments.
Dar was expected to steer the economy as head of the Senate. However, PM Sharif’s PML-N made a power-sharing deal with Bilawal Bhutto’s PPP after forming the current coalition government. The opposition PTI won majority seats in the National Assembly as part of the arrangement.
With the Senate chairman role going to the PPP, Dar settled for another cabinet berth. PM Sharif tapped into his senior party leader’s expertise by nominating him as the new Deputy Prime Minister.
Dar, a long-time Sharif family associate, brings extensive political experience and financial acumen to the second-highest office. Observers say the appointment underscores his significance within the ruling dispensation.
