Following the imposition of emergency and governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the federal government has formed an 11-member technocratic KP Advisory Council.
The council will assist KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi, who is now in charge of running the province, in exercising the functions of the KP government on behalf of the federal government.
According to Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, the council comprises “competent” individuals as opposed to the PTI-led provincial government.
Here is a breakdown of who is part of the council and what portfolio they have been assigned.
- Kifayatullah Khan
Khan has been tasked with overseeing the provincial Home Department affairs. He previously served as the KP prisons inspector general (IG) and chairman of the Fata Tribunal. He is also the former secretary of the Home and Tribal Affairs Department and the ex-Mardan commissioner.
- Tariq Mehmood Pasha
Tariq Mehmood Pasha, former chairperson of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), will be overseeing the province’s financial affairs. He was appointed as the FBR head in 2017 and has been described as a trusted aide of then-finance minister Ishaq Dar. He has also served at the Economic Affairs Division secretary and special assistant to the prime minister on finance.
- Amir Javed
Supreme Court Advocate Amir Javed will be advising the KP governor on law. In 2023, he was appointed as the KP advocate general, at a time when he was serving as the additional attorney general for Pakistan. Earlier, he also served as the deputy attorney general. He resigned as the advocate general after the 2024 general elections.
- Syed Amir Abdullah
Syed Amir Abdullah will be handling education-related matters in KP. He is a former caretaker provincial minister and an ex-member of the National Counter Terrorism Authority’s expert committee. He holds a PhD degree in international relations.
- Nigar Johar Khan
Also included in the council is Lt Gen (retd) Nigar Johar Khan, whose life and career have been captured in a Pakistani film, ‘Aik Hai Nigar’.
Lt Gen (retd) Johar is a graduate of the Army Medical College and holds an MCPS degree in family medicine, MSc in advanced medical administration and a Masters in Public Health. She has served as the National Instructor of Hospital Preparedness in Emergency.
Besides being the first female officer to be promoted to three-star rank, she was also the first female officer to command an army hospital, when she headed Combined Military Hospital, Jhelum, as a brigadier. At the time of her promotion, she was commanding the Military Hospital, Rawalpindi.
She has been decorated with Tamgha-i- Imtiaz (Military) and is also the recipient of Fatima Jinnah Gold Medal for meritorious services in Army Medical Corps from the prime minister of Pakistan. Earlier this year, she also received the Hilal-i-Imtiaz.
- Sarfraz Ali Shah
Sarfraz Ali Shah, who served as the adviser to the KP chief minister on planning and development from Aug 2024-Mar 2024, will be overseeing the matters of Mines and Minerals Department. He holds a PhD in economics.
- Muhammad Irshad
Another FBR chairman has been included in the council, this time to oversee matters related to industries and commerce. Muhammad Irshad is also a member of the Pakistan Red Crescent Society’s management board and holds a PhD in finance.
- Asif Rafiq
Ex-KP caretaker minister Asif Rafiq has been appointed to oversee the department of Communication and Works.
- Maulana Muhammad Tayyab Qureshi
KP’s Chief Khateeb Maulana Muhammad Tayyab Qureshi will be advising the governor on religious affairs. He is the administrator of Jamia Ashrafia Peshawar and the prayer leader of Peshawar’s Mahabat Khan Mosque.
- Osman Saifullah Khan
Tasked with overseeing energy-related matters, Osman Saifullah Khan is a member of Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology’s board of governors. He is the grandson of former president Ghulam Ishaq Khan and a former senator. He is also a former member of the Pakistan State Oil’s board of management and ex-chairperson of the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association in KP.
- Samar Haroon Bilour
PML-N MNA Samar Haroon Bilour, a former member of the KP Assembly, is the adviser on information and broadcasting.