ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Friday assigned portfolios to the recently inducted federal and state ministers, advisers, and special assistants to the prime minister who took oath last month while portfolios of some serving ministers were also changed.
About a week ago, the federal cabinet witnessed a significant expansion with the addition of 12 new federal ministers, nine ministers of state, three advisers, and four special assistants to the Prime Minister (SAPM).
With the induction of the new lot, the size of the federal cabinet doubled, increasing its members from 21 to 43, including 30 federal ministers, nine ministers of state and four advisers.
Cabinet reshuffle: portfolios allocated to new ministers, advisers
According to a notification issued by Cabinet Division, the appointments were made upon inductions as federal ministers and ministers of state, under clause (1) of Article 92 of the Constitution.
“The prime minister, under rule 3(4) of the Rules of Business, 1973, has been pleased to allocate the portfolios (business of the government) to the federal ministers and ministers of state,” said the notification.
The new federal ministers include Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhary (Parliamentary Affairs), Ali Pervaiz Malik (Petroleum and Natural Resources), Aurangzeb Khan Khichi (National Heritage and Culture), Khalid Hussain Magsi (Science and Technology), Muhammad Hanif Abbasi (Pakistan Railways), Muhammad Mueen Wattoo (Water Resources), Muhammad Junaid Anwar (Maritime Affairs), Muhammad Raza Hayat Harraj (Defence Production), Sardar Muhammad Yousaf (Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony), Shaza Fatima Khawaja (Information Technology and Telecommunication), Rana Mubashar Iqbal (Public Affairs Unit), and Syed Mustafa Kamal, National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination.
The new state ministers include Malik Rasheed Ahmad Khan (National Food Security and Research), Abdul Rehman Khan Kanju (Power Division with additional portfolio of Public Affairs Unit), Aqeel Malik (Law and Justice), Bilal Azhar Kayani (Pakistan Railways), Kesoo Mal Kheal Das (Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony), Mohammad Awn Saqlain (Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development), Mukhtar Ahmad Malik (National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination), Talal Chaudhry (Interior and Narcotics Control), and Wajiha Qamar, Federal Education and Professional Training.
A separate notification stated that ex-Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister Pervez Khattak was appointed an adviser on interior affairs while Dr Syed Tauqir Hussain Shah and Muhammad Ali were appointed advisers to the PM’s Office and the Privatisation Ministry, respectively.
The four SAPMs were given their portfolios in a separate notification with Haroon Akhtar for industries and production, Huzaifa Rehman for national heritage and culture, Mubarak Zeb for tribal affairs and Talha Burki for political affairs.
In another notification, the Cabinet Division also notified new portfolios for the sitting ministers already serving in the federal cabinet, who include Khawaja Asif (Defence), Azam Nazeer Tarar (Law and Justice with additional portfolio of Human Rights Ministry), Dr Musadik Malik (Climate Change and Environmental Coordination), Attaullah Tarar (Information and Broadcasting), Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui (Federal Education and Professional Training), Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh (Board of Investment), Abdul Aleem Khan (Communications), Chaudhry Salik Hussain (Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development), and Rana Tanveer Hussain, National Food Security and Research.
According to Article 92 of the Constitution, no more than one-fourth of federal ministers and ministers of state can be from the Senate, and the total cabinet size cannot exceed 11 percent of the total parliamentary membership.
Currently, the National Assembly have 336 members, while the Senate comprises 96, bringing the total to 432. The trend of maintaining a large federal cabinet is not a new trend in the country as nearly every administration has promised to limit its size, only to later fill their cabinets to the brim.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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