Zartaj Gul

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Zartaj Gul
Minister of State for Climate Change
In office
5 October 2018 – 10 April 2022
PresidentArif Alvi
Prime MinisterImran Khan
MinisterMalik Amin Aslam
Member of the National Assembly of Pakistan
In office
13 August 2018 – 17 January 2023
ConstituencyNA-191 (Dera Ghazi Khan-III)
Personal details
BornNovember 11
Bannu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Political partyPakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (2005-present)
Spouse
Humayun Raza Khan Akhwind
​
​
(m. 2010)​
Alma materQueen Mary College
National College of Arts, Rawalpindi
Websitehttps://zartajgulpti.com

Zartaj Gul (Pashto, Urdu: زرتاج گُل ) is a Pakistani politician who served as Minister of State for Climate Change, in Imran Khan ministry from 5 October 2018 until 10 April 2022 when Imran Khan was ousted by a no-confidence motion. She remained a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan between August 2018 and January 2023.

As a minister, Gul was accused of nepotism, for making an official request to get her sister an important appointment,[1] and mocked for lacking common knowledge after making numerous bizarre statements.[2][3]

Early life and education[edit]

Gul hails from North Waziristan, born in Bannu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa[4] to Ahmad Wazir, chief engineer of WAPDA and belongs to Wazir tribe.[5][4][6]

She obtained her early education in her native town Bannu and Miramshah before moving to Lahore with her family.[4] She attended Queen Mary College for her undergraduate studies and then National College of Arts for her postgraduate studies.[6] She did Textile Designing from National College of Arts.[4]

After completing her education, she joined Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)[7] and became a volunteer with Insaf Student Forum (ISF) in 2005.[4]

She moved to Dera Ismail Khan after getting married in 2010.[4]

Political career[edit]

Gul ran for the seat of the National Assembly of Pakistan as a candidate of PTI from Constituency NA-172 (Dera Ghazi Khan-II) in 2013 Pakistani general election.[7] She received 38,643 against 49,142 votes of Hafiz Abdul Kareem and lost the seat.[8]

She was elected to the National Assembly as a candidate of PTI from NA-191 (Dera Ghazi Khan-III) in 2018 Pakistani general election.[9][10][11][12] She received 79,817 votes and defeated Awais Leghari.[13]

On 5 October 2018, she was inducted into the federal cabinet of Prime Minister Imran Khan[14] and was appointed as Minister of State for Climate Change.[15]

Gul's bizarre statements[edit]

As a minister with an important portfolio, Gul was frequently criticized and ridiculed by the media for her bizarre statements. Some of these included her explanation for why coronavirus was named Covid 19;[2][16] and attributing, in early 2019, heavy winter rains and snowfall to a sincere government coming to power in Pakistan.[3]

Controversy[edit]

In June 2019, Gul was criticized by the media for allegedly using her position to secure appointment of her sister as a director of NACTA. Gul's principal staff officer wrote an official letter to the Secretary Interior, following up on a "telephonic conversation with Ms Zartaj Gul, Minister of State for Climate, regarding the appointment of Ms Shabnam Gul in NACTA".[1] Prime Minister Imran Khan reportedly "took notice of the situation", but took no action against Gul other than requesting her to withdraw her letter; Gul's sister was appointed to the position.[17] NACTA later released a statement "clarifying" that the appointment of Gul's sister was merit-based, even though she had no prior experience in the field.[18][19]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Durrani, Fakhar. "Zartaj Gul made official request to appoint her sister in Nacta". www.thenews.com.pk. The News. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
  2. ^ a b "Zartaj Gul gives novel definition of COVID-19". www.thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 2024-06-03.
  3. ^ a b Khan, Rina Saeed (2019-04-21). "Pakistan is in a climate crisis but its minister incharge is a bigger cause for concern". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 2024-06-03.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Zartaj Gul: breaking barriers in clan politics in southern Punjab | The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 13 August 2018. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  5. ^ "Women For All Seasons".
  6. ^ a b "Female factor: In DG Khan, Zartaj Gul Akhwand set to fight dynastic politics | The Express Tribune". The Express Tribune. 6 May 2013. Retrieved 28 July 2018.
  7. ^ a b "Zartaj Gul, a young woman who upended the Legharis' rule". Geo News. 2 August 2018. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  8. ^ "2013 election result" (PDF). ECP. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  9. ^ "Election results: Imran Khan's PTI on top". Geo News. Retrieved 28 July 2018.
  10. ^ "Live Blog - DAWN.COM". zartajgulpti.com/. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  11. ^ PTI Ki Zartaj Gul Bazi Maar Gain - Election 2018 - Dunya News, Dunya News, retrieved 2023-07-20
  12. ^ Unofficial Result: PTI Zartaj Gul Wins NA-191, Abbtakk, retrieved 2023-07-20
  13. ^ "NA-191 Result - Election Results 2018 - Dera Ghazi Khan 3 - NA-191 Candidates - NA-191 Constituency Details". www.thenews.com.pk. The News. Retrieved 28 July 2018.
  14. ^ Reporter, The Newspaper's Staff (6 October 2018). "Six federal ministers administered oath". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  15. ^ "Notification - 5 October 2018" (PDF). Cabinet Division. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  16. ^ "Covid-19 has 19 points, says Pakistan minister". The Times of India. 2020-06-23. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2024-06-03.
  17. ^ Tribune.com.pk (2019-06-03). "PML-N moves ECP against Zartaj Gul over sister's appointment". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 2019-06-04.
  18. ^ "NACTA CLARIFIES 'MERIT-BASED' APPOINTMENT OF ZARTAJ GUL'S SISTER". arynews.tv. 2019-06-01.
  19. ^ Post, The Frontier. "PM Imran Khan takes notice of Zartaj Gul's letter to NACTA". Retrieved 2023-05-27.
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