Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar (; ; born 1971) is a Pakistani politician who is currently serving as the
caretaker prime minister of Pakistan
The Caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan ( ur, ) is the acting head of government in Pakistan following the Dissolution of parliament, dissolution of the National Assembly of Pakistan, National Assembly. The purpose of this post is to ensure free ...
, in office since August 2023. He succeeded
Shehbaz Sharif
Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi: , ; born 23 September 1951) is a Pakistani politician and businessman who is currently serving as the 23rd Prime Minister of Pakistan, in office since 11 April 2022. He is the current president of ...
. He previously served as the spokesperson of the
Government of Balochistan
The Government of Balochistan ( ur, ) is the provincial government of the largest province of Balochistan, Pakistan in Quetta. The head of the province is the Governor, who is nominated by the President of Pakistan. The chief executive of the G ...
from 2015 to 2017.
Early life and education
Kakar was born on 15 May 1971 in
Qilla Saifullah
Killa Saifullah ( ps, قلعه سيف الله), also Qilla Saifullah is a city in Killa Saifullah District, Balochistan, Pakistan.) is a district in northwestern Balochistan province, Pakistan. Killa Saifullah is famous for its fertile soil produ ...
,
Balochistan
Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...
into a prominent middle-class
Pashtun
Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...
family: his grandfather Dr Noor Ul Haq Kakar was the personal physician of the
Khan of Kalat
The Khanate of Kalat ( bal, کلاتءِ ھانات) was a Baloch Khanate that existed from 1512 to 1955 in the centre of the modern-day province of Balochistan, Pakistan. Its rulers were Brahui speakers. Prior to that they were subjects ...
, his father Ihtishamul Haq Kakar was a civil servant while his maternal uncle Arbab Yousaf Kasi and other relatives have been involved in politics. The
Kakar
The Kakar (Pashto: کاکړ) is a Gharghashti Pashtun tribe, based mostly in Northern Balochistan, Pakistan and Loy Kandahar in Afghanistan.
Legendary origin
Kakars are sons of Gharghashti who was the son of Qais Abdul Rashid.
In Herat, the Ka ...
tribe to which he belongs is considered to be particularly influential in the northern parts of
Balochistan
Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...
Cadet College Kohat
Cadet College Kohat Urdu : کیڈٹ کالج کوہاٹ is a military high school located on the outskirts of Kohat, Pakistan.
History
In Pakistan, Cadet Colleges were introduced by late Field Marshal, Muhammad Ayub Khan (Field Marshal), Ayub ...
. He holds a
master's degree
A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.
in
political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
and
sociology
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...
, which he completed at the
University of Balochistan
The University of Balochistan (UB) (Urdu: جامعہ بلوچستان; Balochi: بلوچستان ء یونیورسٹی ), also known as Balochistan University, is a public university located in the downtown area of Quetta, Balochistan, Pakistan. ...
in the 1990s. He further attempted to study
law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...
at
Birkbeck, University of London
, mottoeng = Advice comes over nightTranslation used by Birkbeck.
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £4.3 m (2014)
, budget = £10 ...
in the United Kingdom but did not complete the program.
He returned to Pakistan in 2005.
Academic career
Kakar started his career as a
teacher
A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching.
''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...
.
Kakar is also involved with various think tanks formulating Pakistan's foreign policy and is a keen observer of the geopolitics of South Asia, especially, Afghanistan-Pakistan relations. He is also on the visiting faculty of Command and Staff College,
Quetta
Quetta (; ur, ; ; ps, کوټه) is the tenth List of cities in Pakistan by population, most populous city in Pakistan with a population of over 1.1 million. It is situated in Geography of Pakistan, south-west of the country close to the ...
Islamabad
Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital T ...
where Kakar delivers lecture on
International Relations
International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such as ...
.
Kakar is fluent in
Pashto
Pashto (,; , ) is an Eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family. It is known in historical Persian literature as Afghani ().
Spoken as a native language mostly by ethnic Pashtuns, it is one of the two official languages ...
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
,
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
,
Balochi Balochi, sometimes spelt in various other ways, may refer to:
* Balochi language, a language of Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan
* an adjective for something related to the Baloch people, an ethnic group of Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan
* an adjecti ...
Kakar began his political career when he joined PML-Q in 2006. He contested a seat in the
National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...
from Quetta in the 2008 general election but was unsuccessful.
Kakar supported military actions in Balochistan during the ethnic nationalist insurgency from 2007 to 2013, often dismissing allegations of
military abuses
Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...
in the province and attributing unrest to external factors. In December 2015, his stance led to his appointment as the
spokesperson
A spokesperson, spokesman, or spokeswoman, is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others.
Duties and function
In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have receiv ...
for the
Chief Minister of Balochistan
The Chief Minister of Balochistan ( ur, وزیر اعلیٰ بلوچستان) is the head of government of the Pakistani province of Balochistan. The chief minister leads the legislative branch of the provincial government, and is elected by the ...
during the tenure of the
Pakistan Muslim League (N)
The Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) ( ur, , translit=Pākistān Muslim Līg (Nūn) PML(N) or PML-N) is a Centre-right politics, centre-right and Liberal conservatism, liberal conservative political party in Pakistan. Alongside the Pakistan Teh ...
(PML-N) government, a position he held until 2018.
In 2018, Kakar left PML-N and helped found a new political party named
Balochistan Awami Party
The Balochistan Awami Party ( ur, , lit=Balochistan People's Party) is a political party based in the Balochistan province of Pakistan founded in 2018 by political dissidents of the Pakistan Muslim League (N) and the Pakistan Muslim League (Q) in ...
(BAP). Later, he was elected to the
Senate of Pakistan
Senate of Pakistan or Aiwān-e-Bālā Pākistān ( ur, , , literally "Pakistan upper house"), is the upper legislative chamber of the bicameral legislature of Pakistan, and together with the National Assembly makes up the Parliament of Pakista ...
as an independent candidate for a general seat from Balochistan in
2018 Pakistani Senate election
The triennial Senate Elections of Pakistan were held on 3 March 2018 to replace 52 retiring senators - half of the Senate's strength - with the winning candidates serving six-year terms. Overall, Pakistan Muslim League (N) came out as the largest ...
. He took oath as Senator on 12 March 2018. He also remained Chairperson for the Committee of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development and members of other committees including the Business Advisory Committee, Finance and Revenue, Foreign Affairs, Science and Technology.
In 2020, Kakar was briefly considered for the position of Federal Minister of Information in Imran Khan's government, but he was ultimately not appointed.
Caretaker Premiership, 2023–Present
In 2023, Kakar was nominated to serve as
Caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan
The Caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan ( ur, ) is the acting head of government in Pakistan following the Dissolution of parliament, dissolution of the National Assembly of Pakistan, National Assembly. The purpose of this post is to ensure free ...
by the outgoing opposition leader and the outgoing Prime Minister
Shehbaz Sharif
Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi: , ; born 23 September 1951) is a Pakistani politician and businessman who is currently serving as the 23rd Prime Minister of Pakistan, in office since 11 April 2022. He is the current president of ...
. The president
Arif Alvi
Arif-ur-Rehman Alvi (; born 29 July 1949) is a Pakistani dentist and politician currently serving as the 13th President of Pakistan, in office since 9 September 2018. He was a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan from June 2013 to May 2 ...
signed on the summary making him the 8th Caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan. He took oath on the 76th
independence day of Pakistan
Pakistan Establishment Day (colloquially the Fourteenth of August) is a state holiday in Pakistan commemorating the nation's establishment from the United Kingdom on 14 August 1947, establishing the Dominion of Pakistan.
Pakistan came into ...
, 14 August 2023. He resigned from the Senate on 14 August 2023 and on the same day, his resignation was accepted by the
Chairman of the Senate
The Chairman of the Senate of Pakistan ( ur, ), is the president-chair of the Senate of Pakistan.Sadiq Sanjrani
Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani ( ur, ; born 14 April 1978) is a Pakistani politician who is from Balochistan and is the 8th and current Chairman of the Senate of Pakistan. He took his oath of office as a Member and Chairman of the Senate of Pakistan o ...
.
In October 2023, he called for a ceasefire in the
Israel–Hamas war
An armed conflict between Israel and Hamas-led Palestinian militant groups has been taking place chiefly in and around the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023. On that day, Palestinian militant groups launched 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, a surp ...
. In November 2023, Kakar said that "We are witnessing a holocaust of Palestinian children in Gaza. This appalling and atrocious children holocaust must stop immediately."
Controversies
Links with the establishment
In 2016, Kakar established the NGO, Voice of Balochistan (VOB), where he served as CEO. VOB, which was not officially registered until 2021, operated a network of pro-military social media accounts and received funds from the
exchequer
In the civil service of the United Kingdom, His Majesty’s Exchequer, or just the Exchequer, is the accounting process of central government and the government's ''current account'' (i.e., money held from taxation and other government reven ...
. The
National Accountability Bureau
The National Accountability Bureau ( ur, ; abbreviated NAB) is an autonomous and constitutionally established federal institution responsible to build efforts against corruption and prepare critical national economic intelligence assessments ...
(NAB) initiated an investigation into then-Senator Kakar for alleged corruption related to the NGO, Voice of Balochistan. The investigation, which included a 2021 request by NAB Balochistan for further information from the provincial government, was closed in September 2023 following Kakar's appointment as caretaker prime minister.