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Yusuf Raza Gilani (
Urdu
Urdu (;"Urdu"
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Pakistani
Yousaf Raza Gillani was arrested on 11 February 2001 by the
, ''International Herald Tribune'', 25 March 2008. On 29 March, he won a unanimous vote of confidence in Parliament. On the same day, following the
In April 2010, Gillani announced the
In January 2012, Prime minister Gillani announced the "economic sector have been achieved during the first six months of the current fiscal due to the prudent policies of the present government". In the parliament, Gillani pointed out that the fiscal deficit had come down from 9.4% to 7.6% and inflation that had reached 25% had been reduced to 9.7% during December 2011. In a policy statement, Gillani stated that the "country's GDP growth rate will be 4% basically due to the enhanced agricultural production and the web of taxation has been increased". The tax collection in 2011 was more 27% comparing to 2010. An unsuccessful attempt was carried out by Gillani's government to privatise the mega-state corporations, particularly the power sector; major nationalised industries such as
Attempts were made to enhance diplomatic relations with the United States, however as the time passed, Gillani's relations with the United States became somewhat troubled, although United States maintained farewell relations with him. On multiple occasions, he countered the US pressure and backed the military efforts to curbed down the militancy in the region. After receiving heated criticism, Gilani repudiated the US claims that his country was falling short on fighting the war on terrorism. Gilani countered the claims on CNN and maintained that: "If there is any credible, actionable information, please share with us, because are already working with you; my ISI (Pakistan), ISI is working with the Central Intelligence Agency, American CIA. What else do you want?".
In 2011, the relations with United States suffered a major set back and resentment when the United States unilaterally conducted a Death of Osama bin Laden, secret offence (see: ''Operation Neptune Spear, Neptune Spear'') in Abbottabad, which resulted in successful execution of Usama Bin Laden. Immediately after learning the news, Gillani and President Zardari chaired a high-level meeting with the senior Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, military leadership in Islamabad. Gillani reportedly announced that: "We will not allow our soil to be used against any other country for terrorism and therefore, I think it's a great victory, it's a success and I congratulate the success of this operation." Later Gilani blamed the world for their failure to capture bin Laden. The relationship between Pakistan and the United States fell to a new low following the 2011 NATO attack in Pakistan, Salala Incident, with his government and the elite Pakistani military establishment reassessing their diplomatic, political, military and intelligence relationship with the United States.NATO attack allegedly kills 24 Pakistani troops
, Yahoo! News All major NATO supply lines to Afghanistan, NATO supply lines were immediately closed leaving the blockaded supply trucks vulnerable to attacks. On 26 November 2011, Gillani's government ordered the US to shut down and vacate the Shamsi Airfield, PAF Base Shamsi in the southwestern Balochistan province within a deadline of 15 days. On 10 December, the troops from the Frontier Corps took full control of the air force base as scheduled, and by 11 December all remaining American staff were evacuated. Prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani informed the cabinet that Pakistan was at a critical juncture in its relationship with the US and NATO and it was time to make some important decisions."Decisions regarding ties with the US and NATO will be made in the national interest." In December 2011, Gillani reportedly told the BBC interviewer that "his country does not trust the United States, and the feeling is mutual". Although, he did goaded that relations were important and maintained: "We are working together and still we don't trust each other... we should have more confidence in each other..". The Pakistan-Russia relations, relations with Russia were pushed to level of intensity of bilateral relations, which he termed it as "''New Momentum''". In 2012, Gillani publicly greets Vladimir Putin for successfully contesting in 2012 Russian presidential election, Russian presidential elections. In 2011, Prime minister Yousaf Raza Gillani and Russian Prime minister (now President) Vladimir Putin held a frank discussion in a cordial atmosphere on 10th Heads of Government meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. Gilani successfully convinced Russia finance and invest in the large energy projects including Central Asia-South Asia 1000 (CASA-1000) to allow the international transition of the power generation from Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan to Pakistan. Russia has provided US$500 million for the CASA-1000 for the power transmission project. In 2011, both countries initiated the work on the framework n the proposed Free Trade Agreement and currency swap arrangement to boost bilateral trade and further strengthen their economic ties. On 4 March 2012, only few hours being re-elected, Gilani telephoned Putin and greeted him on his success in the election for the President of Russia, and quoted: "it was a testimony to the confidence the people of Russia had reposed in his leadership".
Though the Pakistan Government subsequently rejected his claims, it triggered a storm in the country's political science circles, especially between the civil government and the military. A judicial commission was subsequently appointed to investigate the matter.
Meanwhile, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Chairman joint chiefs Khalid Shameem Wynne, Shameem Wynne's request to the supreme court for an independent probe into the matter was accepted. The court rejected the government's contention that the issue should be investigated by a parliamentary panel.Pak SC to decide on fate of Zardari, Gilani on Monday
. The Hindu (15 January 2012). Retrieved 17 January 2012. Tensions between the government and the military reached a peak after Gillani said the armed forces and the intelligence chiefs had acted in an "unconstitutional and illegal" manner by filing affidavits on the memo issue in the Supreme Court. The military reacted within days through a strongly worded statement that said the premier's remarks could have "grievous consequences". Gillani retaliated by sacking Defence Secretary Lieutenant General (retired) Khalid Naeem Lodhi, a confidant of Chief of Army Staff (Pakistan), chief of army staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, Pervez Kiani. He reiterated that the Defence Secretary was removed in accordance with the law as he had made a mistake by not following the government's rules. He maintained that he was only answerable to the Parliament.
, The News International , 29 May 2012.
On 6 June 2012, the Supreme Court admitted the petitions and a three-member bench was formed to be headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry to hear the petitions. After hearing petitions by both sides, the notices were sent to prime minister, speaker of the national assembly, and other concerned offices to the case. The hearing of the petitions was subsequently adjourned to 14 June 2012. On 15 June, Gillani's lawyer senator Aitzaz Ahsan defended speaker's move, and argued that "the office of speaker was no more 'a post office' after the 18th Amendment as it had been drastically changed" and that "[the speaker] had used her quasi judicial powers and gave her ruling over the issue with due application of her mind". Ahsan maintained that the prime minister had accepted the conviction but not disqualification. On 17 June, Ahsan concluded that speaker's ruling was in accordance with parliamentary ethics and reiterated that the ruling in the contempt of court case did not refer to a disqualification of the prime minister. Mirza also submitted the written statement in which, she maintained that the court's ruling did not order that a reference on the issue should directly be sent to the Election Commission, and has had the constitutional authority to decide over the disqualification of a member of the assembly. Her written statement was discarded by the supreme court, and reserved the final decision of Gillani's qualification matter. At the end of the proceedings, the chief justice marked that the petitions had stated that a "convicted person" was representing the people; the prime minister represented the public and not a party. Minutes before adjourning the court, the chief justice quoted: "The fate of the people was in the hands of a man who had been convicted by the Supreme Court... (...)..".
Finally on 19 June 2012, the Supreme Court of Pakistan ousted and further disqualified Prime Minister Gillani citing the earlier conviction on 26 April 2012. The Supreme Court in its standing orders, said that "Gillani was ineligible to hold the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Prime Minister's office after April 26th conviction" and all orders given by him till date would stand null and void. Consequently, the Election Commission of Pakistan, Election Commission issued the government notification with regards to the disqualification of Gillani. The country's Election Commission of Pakistan, election commission noted that, accepting the rulings of Supreme Court, Gillani was disqualified as a member of parliament with effect immediately from 26 April 2012.
Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani
official Pakistan government site
Yousaf Raza Gilani – a profile
''Daily Times (Pakistan), Daily Times'', 23 March 2008
Profile: Yousuf Raza Gilani
Syed Shoaib Hasan, ''BBC News'', 17 June 2009 , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Gillani, Yousaf Raza Yousaf Raza Gillani, 1952 births Expelled members of the National Assembly of Pakistan Gilani family, Yousaf Raza Government College University, Lahore alumni Living people Minister of Railways (Pakistan) Pakistan People's Party politicians Pakistani people of Iranian descent Pakistani politicians convicted of crimes Pakistani politicians convicted of corruption Pakistani prisoners and detainees Pakistani Sunni Muslims Pakistani white-collar criminals People from Islamabad People from Multan People of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) People of the insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Politicians from Karachi Prime Ministers of Pakistan Speakers of the National Assembly of Pakistan University of the Punjab alumni
politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
who served as 18th Prime Minister of Pakistan
The prime minister of Pakistan ( ur, , romanized: Wazīr ē Aʿẓam , ) is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen cabinet, despite the president of Paki ...
from 25 March 2008, until his retroactive disqualification and ouster by the Supreme Court of Pakistan
The Supreme Court of Pakistan ( ur, ; ''Adālat-e-Uzma Pākistān'') is the apex court in the judicial hierarchy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
Established in accordance to thePart VIIof the Constitution of Pakistan, it has ultimate a ...
on 26 April 2012. He currently serves as the vice-chairman
The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the group ...
of the central executive committee of the Pakistan Peoples Party
The Pakistan People's Party ( ur, , ; PPP) is a centre-left, social-democratic political party in Pakistan. It is currently the third largest party in the National Assembly and second largest in the Senate of Pakistan. The party was founded ...
. and in 2021 was elected as a Senator
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
. On 26 March 2021, he was appointed as Leader of Opposition in 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 ...
. Gillani is also a consultant to Cheshire East Council
Cheshire East Council is the local authority of the Borough of Cheshire East, Cheshire, England. It is a unitary authority, having the powers of a non-metropolitan county and district council combined. It provides a full range of local government ...
in England.
After the 1988 general elections, he secured his ministerial appointment in the Ministry of Tourism The Minister of Tourism is the head of the governmental department that specializes in tourism, recreation and/or culture.
The position exists in many different countries under several names:
*Ministry of Tourism and Environment (Albania)
* Minist ...
in the government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto
Benazir Bhutto ( ur, بینظیر بُھٹو; sd, بينظير ڀُٽو; Urdu ; 21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th and 13th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 t ...
, and since then, he had been a senior member of parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
for the Multan District
Multan District ( ur, ), is a district in the Punjab province of Pakistan. According to the 1998 census of Pakistan it had a population of 3,116,851 (1.315 million or 42.2% in urban areas). Its capital is the city of Multan. The district of ...
. After his party secured the plurality in the 1993 general elections, Gillani was elevated as the 15th
15 (fifteen) is the natural number following 14 (number), 14 and preceding 16 (number), 16.
Mathematics
15 is:
* A composite number, and the sixth semiprime; its proper divisors being , and .
* A deficient number, a smooth number, a lucky ...
Speaker
Speaker may refer to:
Society and politics
* Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly
* Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture
* A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially:
** In ...
of 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 ...
by the Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto
Benazir Bhutto ( ur, بینظیر بُھٹو; sd, بينظير ڀُٽو; Urdu ; 21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th and 13th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 t ...
, a post he held until 16 February 1997. On 11 February 2001, Gillani was imprisoned in Adiala Jail
Central Jail Rawalpindi (also known as Adiala Jail) is a prominent prison in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
History
The Central Jail Rawalpindi was built from the late 1970s and early 1980s during the military regime of General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, afte ...
by a military court
A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...
instituted under President Pervez Musharraf
General Pervez Musharraf ( ur, , Parvez Muśharraf; born 11 August 1943) is a former Pakistani politician and four-star general of the Pakistan Army who became the tenth president of Pakistan after the successful military takeover of the ...
on accusations and charges of corruption, and released on 7 October 2006.
In the wake of the 2008 general elections, his party formed a four-party coalition alliance and nominated him for the office of Prime Minister. He is the first prime minister that holds the distinction (thus far, the only prime minister to have achieve this milestone) for successfully presenting five consecutive federal budgets. As Prime Minister, Gillani announced the formation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission
A truth commission, also known as a truth and reconciliation commission or truth and justice commission, is an official body tasked with discovering and revealing past wrongdoing by a government (or, depending on the circumstances, non-state act ...
, rehabilitation of the troubled and war-torn tribal belt, and promised to reduce the federal budget deficit as well as announcing his ambitions to improve the system of education
Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Va ...
. This was followed by announcing the new agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
, land and economic policy
The economy of governments covers the systems for setting levels of taxation, government budgets, the money supply and interest rates as well as the labour market, national ownership, and many other areas of government interventions into the e ...
that lifted the bans on labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
and students' unions
A students' union, also known by many other names, is a student organization present in many colleges, universities, and high schools. In higher education, the students' union is often accorded its own building on the campus, dedicated to social, ...
, while he worked on and implemented the new energy
In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat a ...
and nuclear policies to tackle the energy crisis in the country. But his policies, without meaningful economic reforms, led to a high rise in inflation and sharp decline in economic performance, a period referred to as the " Era of Stagflation".
A consistently strong US ally as prime minister, Gillani was ranked as the 38th most powerful person in the world by ''Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
''. After years of confronting and resisting the Supreme Court of Pakistan
The Supreme Court of Pakistan ( ur, ; ''Adālat-e-Uzma Pākistān'') is the apex court in the judicial hierarchy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
Established in accordance to thePart VIIof the Constitution of Pakistan, it has ultimate a ...
rulings to reinstate the corruption cases against Benazir and Asif Zardari
Asif Ali Zardari ( ur, ; sd, ; born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician who is the president of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians and was the co-chairperson of Pakistan People's Party. He served as the 11th president of Pakista ...
, he was convicted by the Supreme Court of violating Article 63(1)(g) of the Constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When ...
of Pakistan, on 26 April 2012. The verdict was rendered by the Supreme Court when it found him the guilty of contempt of court
Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the cour ...
for refusing to reopen corruption cases against president Asif Ali Zardari
Asif Ali Zardari ( ur, ; sd, ; born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician who is the president of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians and was the co-chairperson of Pakistan People's Party. He served as the 11th president of Pakistan ...
, but it gave him only a symbolic sentence "till the rising of the court", a sentence lasting 30 seconds. Finally, on 19 June 2012, he was disqualified and ousted by the Supreme Court from holding the prime minister's office, with the Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry
Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry ( ur, ; born 12 December 1948) is a Pakistani jurist who served as the 20th Chief Justice of Pakistan over three non-consecutive terms from 29 June 2005 to 11 December 2013.
Chaudhry began practice as an advocate of ...
clarifying that: "Gillani had ceased to be heprime minister and (is) disqualified from membership of parliament on 26 April 2012, the date of his conviction".
His disqualification term was ended in April 2017 and the Supreme Court allowed him to contest in the 2018 Pakistani general election
General elections were held in Pakistan on Wednesday, 25 July 2018 to elect the members of 15th National Assembly and the four Provincial Assemblies. The three major parties Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) led by Imran Khan, the Pakistan Muslim ...
.
He was PPP's candidate for Islamabad's general seat in the 2021 Senate Elections. He defeated the incumbent government's candidate Minister of Finance Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh in a major upset victory, prompting the incumbent PM Imran Khan to take a vote of confidence from the National Assembly.
On 12 March 2021, he contested for the chairmanship of the Senate of Pakistan and lost to his rival 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 ...
. Gilani received 42 votes, compared to his rival who received 48 votes. 7 votes were rejected.
Personal life and background
Makhdoom Syed Yousuf Raza Gillani belongs to an influentialSufi Muslim
Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, r ...
family of Multan
Multan (; ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan, on the bank of the Chenab River. Multan is Pakistan's seventh largest city as per the 2017 census, and the major cultural, religious and economic centre of southern Punjab.
Multan is one of the List ...
. He is a descendant of the Sufi saint Sayyid Musa Pak Shahid Gilani.
His father Makhdoom Syed Alamdar Hussain Gilani was one of the signatories of the Pakistan resolution and later served as the Federal & provincial minister of Pakistan and Punjab respectively. His uncle Makhdoom Syed Wilayat Hussain Shah served as the chairman of the District council Multan whereas he also remained a member of the legislative assembly. His grandfather Makhdoom Syed Ghulam Mustafa Shah also served as the chairman of the Municipal Corporation of Multan and later got elected as a member of the legislative assembly in the 1945–46 general elections. His great-grandfather Makhdoom Syed Sadar-ud-din Shah Gilani was invited to the Delhi Darbar in 1910 whereas Sadar-ud-Din Shah Gilani's Brother Makhdoom Syed Rajan Baksh Gilani remained a member of the legislative council and later served as the first Muslim mayor of Multan.
Family and education
Syed Yousuf Raza Gillani was born on 9 June 1952, inMultan
Multan (; ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan, on the bank of the Chenab River. Multan is Pakistan's seventh largest city as per the 2017 census, and the major cultural, religious and economic centre of southern Punjab.
Multan is one of the List ...
, Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
, West-Pakistan. Gillani moved to Lahore, Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
.
Gillani attended Government College University and obtained his B.A. in journalism in 1970, and followed by an MA in Political journalism
Political journalism is a broad branch of journalism that includes coverage of all aspects of politics and political science, although the term usually refers specifically to coverage of civil governments and political power.
Political journa ...
from the University of the Punjab
The University of the Punjab (Urdu, pnb, ), also referred to as Punjab University, is a public, research, coeducational higher education institution located in Lahore, Pakistan. Punjab University is the oldest public university in Pakistan. ...
in 1976. In an interview given to Vasatolah Khan of ''BBC Urdu
BBC Urdu ( ur, ) is the Urdu language station of the BBC World Service, accompanied by its website, which serves as a news portal and provides online access to radio broadcasts. The radio service is broadcast from Broadcasting House in London an ...
'', Gilani maintained that "if he had not pursue his career in the national politics, he would have been a civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing ...
."
Gillani is married to Fauzia Gillani, together they have four sons and one daughter. His eldest son, Abdul Qadir Gillani, started his own political career from Multan
Multan (; ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan, on the bank of the Chenab River. Multan is Pakistan's seventh largest city as per the 2017 census, and the major cultural, religious and economic centre of southern Punjab.
Multan is one of the List ...
, and in 2008 he married the granddaughter of Pir Pagara
sd,
, image =
, caption =
, office = President of Pakistan Muslim League (F)
, term_start = 1985
, term_end = 10 January 2012
, predecessor = ''Position established''
, successor ...
Shah Mardan Shah II
sd,
, image =
, caption =
, office = President of Pakistan Muslim League (F)
, term_start = 1985
, term_end = 10 January 2012
, predecessor = ''Position established''
, successor ...
, an influential political and religious leader of Sindh
Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...
. Abdul Qadir is alleged to have been involved in a corruption case over arrangements for pilgrims to Mecca and in a scandal at a state-owned insurance company. Gillani's three other sons Ali Qasim Gillani, Ali Musa Gillani and Ali Haider Gillani
Ali Haider Gillani is the son of former Prime Minister of Pakistan Yousuf Raza Gillani.
He is member of Provincial Assembly of Punjab since August 2018.
Abduction
On 9 May 2013, he was kidnapped in his home district of Multan after unidentified ...
are triplets. Qasim Gillani is currently doing his undergraduate studies at Brunel University
Brunel University London is a public research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It was founded in 1966 and named after the Victorian engineer and pioneer of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. In June 1 ...
of London. Gillani's daughter Fiza Gillani is the Good-Will Ambassador of Women and has one son called Asfandyar Gillani. Musa Gillani in 2009 and was an MNA in his father's cabinet. Ali Haider Gillani studied at School of Economics
In the history of economic thought, a school of economic thought is a group of economic thinkers who share or shared a common perspective on the way economies work. While economists do not always fit into particular schools, particularly in moder ...
in Lahore. Ali Musa Gillani after completing his studies is now actively participating in politics. Ali Musa was questioned by the Anti-Narcotics Force
The Anti-Narcotics Force ( ur, , reporting name: ''ANF'') is a federal executive bureau of the Government of Pakistan, tasked with combating the narcotics smuggling and use within Pakistan. ANF works under the umbrella of Pakistan Army and Mi ...
(ANF) agents over a scandal.
On 9 May 2013, his son, Ali Haider Gilani, was kidnapped by several armed men in Multan in central Pakistan during an election rally. A group called the Al Mansuri Brigade kidnapped him. He spent three years in captivity, before being rescued in a joint operation between American-led NATO special forces and Afghan forces in May 2016.
Public servant
Yousaf Raza Gillani's political career started in themilitary government
A military government is generally any form of government that is administered by military forces, whether or not this government is legal under the laws of the jurisdiction at issue, and whether this government is formed by natives or by an occup ...
of President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
General Zia-ul-Haq
General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq HI, GCSJ, ร.ม.ภ, (Urdu: ; 12 August 1924 – 17 August 1988) was a Pakistani four-star general and politician who became the sixth President of Pakistan following a coup and declaration of martial law in ...
in 1978, after he joined as a member of the Central Working Committee (CWC) of the Pakistan Muslim League
The Pakistan Muslim League ( ur, ; known as PML), is the name of several different Pakistani political parties that have dominated the right-wing platform in the country.
The Muslim League (a different party) was the party of Pakistan’s ...
(PML), alongside industrialist Nawaz Sharif
Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi language, Punjabi: ; born 25 December 1949) is a Pakistani businessman and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms. He is the longest-serving prime ...
. He soon left the PML, because of political differences with the PML's leadership. He was chosen by General Zia-ul-Haq as a nominee for public servant work in Multan. In 1983, Gillani was elected as the chairman of the District Council Multan commonly known as District Mayor or Zila Nazim in Pakistan.
He first ran in non-partisan and technocratic 1985 general elections and was elected as the Member
Member may refer to:
* Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon
* Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set
* In object-oriented programming, a member of a class
** Field (computer science), entries in ...
of 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 ...
(MNA) of Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
from Lodhran, but was later affiliated with the Pakistan Peoples Party
The Pakistan People's Party ( ur, , ; PPP) is a centre-left, social-democratic political party in Pakistan. It is currently the third largest party in the National Assembly and second largest in the Senate of Pakistan. The party was founded ...
after developing serious political differences with the Pakistan Muslim League
The Pakistan Muslim League ( ur, ; known as PML), is the name of several different Pakistani political parties that have dominated the right-wing platform in the country.
The Muslim League (a different party) was the party of Pakistan’s ...
(PML), led by conservative leader Fida Khan. Gillani fell out with Prime minister Mohammad Junejo and was sidlined from the Pakistan Muslim League (PML) by the senior leadership. Later, he was ousted by Prime minister Junejo and was replaced by other members. According to Gillani's personal account, he went to Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
to meet with Benazir Bhutto during the 1980s and presented his political experience, wanting to join the Peoples Party. After securing a party ticket and successfully running in the 1988 general elections, Gillani joined the first government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
of Prime minister Benazir Bhutto
Benazir Bhutto ( ur, بینظیر بُھٹو; sd, بينظير ڀُٽو; Urdu ; 21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th and 13th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 t ...
and became minister of the Ministry of Tourism (MoT) in March 1989 until January 1990. Later he became minister of Ministry of Housing and Work Force.
Gillani also retained his seat in the 1990 general elections by gaining more than 60 Thousand votes. He once again successfully ran in the 1993 general elections and took the oath of the office of Minister for Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development The Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development is the Government of Ghana agency responsible for the promotion of government policies and projects in Ghana. The ministry also promotes governance and balanced rural based development.
The Min ...
. However, he resigned from his ministry after being nominated by Benazir Bhutto for office of the Speaker
Speaker may refer to:
Society and politics
* Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly
* Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture
* A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially:
** In ...
of the National Assembly of Pakistan
The National Assembly ( ur, , translit=Aiwān-e-Zairīñ, , or ur, قومی اسمبلی, Romanization, romanized: ''Qaumi Assembly'') is the lower house, lower legislative house of the bicameralism, bicameral Parliament of Pakistan, which al ...
in 1993. He was the Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan until 1997 when the new general election in 1997 was held in the country. He was succeeded by Ilahi Bux Soomro 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 and liberal conservative political party in Pakistan. Alongside the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Peoples Party ...
on 2 February 1997.
In July 2018, he contested from constituency NA-158(multan) but lost from PTI candidate Muhammad Ibrahim Khan. He secured 74443 votes and Muhammad Ibrahim Khan got 83304 votes.
Imprisonment
Yousaf Raza Gillani was arrested on 11 February 2001 by the Military Police
Military police (MP) are law enforcement agencies connected with, or part of, the military of a state. In wartime operations, the military police may support the main fighting force with force protection, convoy security, screening, rear recon ...
functioning under the military-controlled 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)— an anti-corruption agency set up by the military government in 1999, over charges that he, along with other politicians, misused his authority while he was Speaker of the National Assembly in 1993–97. Specifically, he was accused of hiring up to 600 people from among his constituents and placing them on the government's payroll. The NAB claimed that Gillani inflicted a loss of Rs 30 million annually on the national exchequer. He was convicted by an anti-corruption court headed by an active-duty officer appointed by General Musharraf and spent nearly six years in prison.
The legal proceedings were perceived by many as politically motivated; his party, the PPP, was in opposition to Musharraf, who had embarked on a campaign to coerce
Coercion () is compelling a party to act in an involuntary manner by the use of threats, including threats to use force against a party. It involves a set of forceful actions which violate the free will of an individual in order to induce a desi ...
party members to switch sides. Thus his conviction by General Musharraf-backed courts and subsequent prison sentence were seen as marks of loyalty within the PPP. His imprisonment was widely condemned by various individuals across the country, including Mushahid Hussain Syed
Mushahid Hussain Syed ( Punjabi, ur, مشاہد حسین سید; b. 1953) is a Pakistani politician, and journalist who is currently the Pakistan Senator from the Islamabad Capital Territory on the platform of the Pakistan Muslim League (N) ...
, a senior leader of the PML-Q
The Pakistan Muslim League (Quaid e Azam Group) ur, ; ''Pākistān Muslim Līg (Qāf)'', Acronyms: PML(Q), PML-Q, PMLQ, "Q League") is a Conservative nationalist political party in Pakistan. As of the 2018 parliamentary election, it has a re ...
. He was released on 7 October 2006 from Adiala Jail
Central Jail Rawalpindi (also known as Adiala Jail) is a prominent prison in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
History
The Central Jail Rawalpindi was built from the late 1970s and early 1980s during the military regime of General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, afte ...
, after spending more than five years in captivity. On 26 April 2012, Prime minister Gillani was convicted on the charges of Contempt of Court
Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the cour ...
, becoming Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
's first Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
to be convicted while holding office. He was sentenced to be held in custody till the rising of court, a symbolic sentence lasting 30 seconds.
Prime Minister of Pakistan
On 22 March 2008, after weeks of consideration, the elite members of the Central Executive Committee accepted the nomination of Gillani over populistAmeen Faheem
Makhdoom Muhammad Ameen Faheem ( ur, ; ''alt. spelling'': Amin Fahim; 4 August 1939 – 21 November 2015) was a Pakistani populist left-wing figure and a poet. He was the senior vice-chairman of Pakistan Peoples Party, chairman of Pakist ...
for the post of prime minister. Meanwhile, the Pakistan Peoples Party completed consultations and negotiations with the other parties to form a coalition alliance and the alliance endorsed the nomination. The formal announcement of the name of prime minister was expected to be made that night.
On 22 March at 9:38 pm 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 ...
, (16:38 GMT), Gillani was officially announced by the peoples party as its candidate for the premiership of the country. Many analysts said that they would not be surprised if Zardari succeeded Gillani after a few months. It was reported on 24 March 2008, that Zardari said he was not interested in the job of prime minister and that Gillani would serve until 2013 in the position. Speculation that Zardari might be gunning for the premiership grew stronger when he picked the less popular Gillani over Ameen Faheem
Makhdoom Muhammad Ameen Faheem ( ur, ; ''alt. spelling'': Amin Fahim; 4 August 1939 – 21 November 2015) was a Pakistani populist left-wing figure and a poet. He was the senior vice-chairman of Pakistan Peoples Party, chairman of Pakist ...
, a much powerful member of the central executive committee. Fahmida Mirza
Fahmida Mirza ( ur, ; born 20 December 1956) is a Pakistani politician who was Federal Minister for Inter Provincial Coordination, in office from 20 August 2018 until 10 April 2022. She served as the 18th and only women Speaker of the National ...
, the newly elected Speaker of the Assembly, insisted there was no plan to replace Gillani. She added, however, that if Gillani did not do a good job, all options were open.
On 24 March 2008, Gillani was elected Prime Minister by Parliament, defeating his rival, Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi
Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi (Urdu, pa, ; born 1 November 1945) is a Pakistani politician who is currently serving as the Chief Minister of Punjab and the President of Pakistan Muslim League (Q), a conservative centrist to centre-right-nationali ...
of the PML-Q, by a score of 264 to 42. He was sworn in by Musharraf on the next day."U.S. diplomats court new Pakistani leaders", ''International Herald Tribune'', 25 March 2008. On 29 March, he won a unanimous vote of confidence in Parliament. On the same day, following the
vote of confidence
A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...
, Gillani announced his programme for the first 100 days of his administration. Some of the points he announced were:
* Frontier Crimes Regulations and Industrial Relations Order repealed.
* A "truth and reconciliation commission
A truth commission, also known as a truth and reconciliation commission or truth and justice commission, is an official body tasked with discovering and revealing past wrongdoing by a government (or, depending on the circumstances, non-state act ...
" proposed.
* PM House budget cut by 40 percent.
* Special counters at airports for parliamentarians to be removed.
* No money to be spent on the renovation of government buildings and residences.
* A freedom of information
Freedom of information is freedom of a person or people to publish and consume information. Access to information is the ability for an individual to seek, receive and impart information effectively. This sometimes includes "scientific, indigeno ...
law to be framed, while PEMRA
Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) ( ur, ) is an independent and constitutionally established federal institution responsible for regulating and issuing channel licenses for establishment of the mass media culture, print a ...
will be made a subsidiary of the information ministry.
* Talks to be initiated with extremists who lay down arms and 'adopt the path of peace'.
* A new package for tribal areas promised.
* Employment commission to be set up.
* Madressah authority to implement a uniform education curriculum.
* One million housing units to be built annually for low-income groups.
* Irrigation channels to be bricklined.
* Appointed Prof. Ghulam Hussain Saleem and Wazir Ibadat adviser to the prime minister for Gilgit Baltistan Affairs.
* A lifting of the bans on elected labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
and students' union
A students' union, also known by many other names, is a student organization present in many colleges, universities, and high schools. In higher education, the students' union is often accorded its own building on the campus, dedicated to social, ...
s.
Consolidation of power
The first part of Gillani's Cabinet was sworn in on 31 March. Of the 24 ministers sworn in on this occasion, 11 were members of thePakistan Peoples Party
The Pakistan People's Party ( ur, , ; PPP) is a centre-left, social-democratic political party in Pakistan. It is currently the third largest party in the National Assembly and second largest in the Senate of Pakistan. The party was founded ...
, nine were members of the Pakistan Muslim League
The Pakistan Muslim League ( ur, ; known as PML), is the name of several different Pakistani political parties that have dominated the right-wing platform in the country.
The Muslim League (a different party) was the party of Pakistan’s ...
(PML), two were members of the Awami National Party
The Awami National Party (ANP; ur, , ps, اولسي ملي ګوند; lit. ''People's National Party'') is a Pashtun nationalist, secular and leftist political party in Pakistan. The party was founded by Abdul Wali Khan in 1986 and its curr ...
, one was from Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam ( ur, جمیعت علماءِ اسلام, abbreviated as JUI) was founded by Shabbir Ahmad Usmani as an offshoot of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind (JUH) on 26 October 1945.
History
The original Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind was formed in Bri ...
, and one came from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas
, conventional_long_name = Federally Administered Tribal Areas
, nation = Pakistan
, subdivision = Autonomous territory
, image_flag = Flag of FATA.svg
, image_coat = File:Coat of arms ...
. Other appointments were expected to follow. Gillani consolidated his powers and successfully lessening the role of president Pervez Musharraf
General Pervez Musharraf ( ur, , Parvez Muśharraf; born 11 August 1943) is a former Pakistani politician and four-star general of the Pakistan Army who became the tenth president of Pakistan after the successful military takeover of the ...
who found it difficult to counter Gilani's collective leadership
A collective is a group of entities that share or are motivated by at least one common issue or interest, or work together to achieve a common objective. Collectives can differ from cooperatives in that they are not necessarily focused upon an ...
with full force. Musharraf failed to gather the support in the country, and Gillani's position was fairly secure; however he could not have remove Musharraf alone.
Gillani secretly but more effectively persuaded his party's leadership to bring about an impeachment motion against President Pervez Musharraf. According to ''The News International
''The News International'', published in broadsheet size, is one of the largest English language newspapers in Pakistan. It is published daily from Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi/Islamabad. An overseas edition is published from London that cater ...
'', Gillani reportedly told at the meeting of the central committee that "they all should "''swim and sink''" with the political forces of PML in the larger interests of democracy. Sources claimed that Gillani had raised concerns bout the deteriorating image of the peoples party, which was seen as working with Musharraf to the much annoyance of the media and the people of Pakistan. Gillani assertively pleaded to central committee that "if at any stage they all have to make a final choice between Musharraf and Nawaz Sharif
Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi language, Punjabi: ; born 25 December 1949) is a Pakistani businessman and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms. He is the longest-serving prime ...
, then central committee's leaders should be standing with the PML in line with the democratic credentials of the party."
On 13 May 2008, the PML (N) ministers resigned from Gillani's government due to a disagreement related to the reinstatement of judges whom Musharraf removed from office in 2007. Zardari, hoping to preserve the coalition, told Gillani to reject the resignations. At the close of 2008, Pakistan's ''The Financial Daily'' conducted a public poll on its website; respondents entered the names of their favourite personalities for the year, and Gillani was named among the top 50. Musharraf's foreign trips were cancelled, and Gilani decided to paid a state visit
A state visit is a formal visit by a head of state to a foreign country, at the invitation of the head of state of that foreign country, with the latter also acting as the official host for the duration of the state visit. Speaking for the host ...
to China instead of Musharraf, to attend the ceremony
A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion.
The word may be of Etruscan origin, via the Latin '' caerimonia''.
Church and civil (secular) ...
of 2008 Beijing Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...
. A public movement
Movement may refer to:
Common uses
* Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece
* Motion, commonly referred to as movement
Arts, entertainment, and media
Literature
* "Movement" (short story), a short story by Nancy Fu ...
led by the Peoples Party-Muslim league Muslim League may refer to:
Political parties Subcontinent
; British India
*All-India Muslim League, Mohammed Ali Jinah, led the demand for the partition of India resulting in the creation of Pakistan.
**Punjab Muslim League, a branch of the organ ...
nexus, Musharraf dramatically resigned from the presidency after delivering an hour long farewell speech on 18 August 2008. Reacting upon Musharraf's removal, Gillani publicly called for national celebration, and marked Musharraf's resignation as "''historic day''." Nationwide celebration were held in the entire country. In a special sitting of parliament, Gillani quoted to his collective alliance, "Today we have buried dictatorship for ever."
Energy policy
In April 2010, Gillani announced the energy policy
Energy policy is the manner in which a given entity (often governmental) has decided to address issues of energy development including energy conversion, distribution and use as well as reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in order to contri ...
to deal with the severe electricity shortage facing Pakistan. In 2010, Gillani went on to attend the Nuclear Security Summit
The Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) is a world summit, aimed at preventing nuclear terrorism around the globe. The first summit was held in Washington, D.C., United States, on April 12–13, 2010. The second summit was held in Seoul, South Korea, i ...
held in Washington, D.C., where he issued a statement saying Pakistan would like to act as a provider and "participate in any non-discriminatory nuclear fuel cycle assurance mechanism. His government tightened the nuclear safety programme, and expanded the role of Nuclear Regulatory Authority (PNRA). In 2012, Gillani attended the 2012 Nuclear Security Summit
The 2012 Nuclear Security Summit was a summit held at the COEX Convention & Exhibition Center in Seoul, South Korea, on March 26 and 27, 2012.
where he defended the right of Pakistan's access to nuclear technology for peaceful uses on a non-discriminatory basis. His government announced the approval the safeguards agreements of the two commercial civil nuclear power plants, and inaugurated the '' CHASNUPP-III'' nuclear power plant in Chasma. In 2012, Gillani gave approval of establishing two civilian nuclear power plant in Karachi to meet the future energy needs of financial and economical development.
On 9 April 2012, Gillani chaired the second energy conference held in Lahore. As part of the federal government's energy conservation plan, Gillani had ordered that air-conditioners of the Prime Minister House and Prime Minister's Secretariat could not be switched on before 11 am. According to the government sources, Gillani's government has levelled up the nuclear energy programme up ~ 78% for two combined 664 MW commercial nuclear plants, C-3 and C-4 at Chashma Nuclear Power Complex
The Chashma Nuclear Power Plant (or CHASNUPP), is a large commercial nuclear power plant located in the vicinities of Chashma colony and Kundian in Punjab in Pakistan.
Officially known as Chashma Nuclear Power Complex, the nuclear power plant ...
to be completed at their record time. The ground work on Karachi Nuclear Power Complex
The Karachi Nuclear Power Plant (or KANUPP) is a large commercial nuclear power plant located at the Paradise Point in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan.
Officially known as Karachi Nuclear Power Complex, the power generation site is composed of thr ...
was also laid in 2012 as part of his nuclear policy. Amid public rage and media pressure, the Gillani government also intensified its ground work on the Thar coal electric project that could develop another source of cheap electricity generation, despite the strong opposition by the planning commission.
On 18 June 2012, a strong and powerful public protest took place against the electricity shortage and load shedding, in Punjab Province. The offices of WAPDA corporations were destroyed, a fashion mall was looted while a completely gutted a three carriages of the train. After learning the news, Gillani summoned a national energy conference in Islamabad to take notice of power crisis. Gillani ordered his staff to double its effort to harness the electricity by any means of force after chairing the conference.
Financial and economic policy
In his first days of government, Gillani attempted to continue thePrivation
Privation is the absence or lack of basic necessities.
Child psychology
In child psychology, privation occurs when a child has no opportunity to form a relationship with a parent figure, or when such relationship is distorted, due to their treatm ...
of Shaukat Aziz
Shaukat Aziz ( ur, ; born 6 March 1949) is a Pakistani former banker and financier who served as 17th prime minister of Pakistan from 28 August 2004 to 15 November 2007, as well as the finance minister of Pakistan from 6 November 1999 to 15 ...
, but the programme was abruptly terminated after the financial crisis of 2007–2008
Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of fi ...
. Gillani accepted the resignation of two Finance ministers
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
and surprisingly appointed the former minister privatisation and investment in the government of Shaukat Aziz
Shaukat Aziz ( ur, ; born 6 March 1949) is a Pakistani former banker and financier who served as 17th prime minister of Pakistan from 28 August 2004 to 15 November 2007, as well as the finance minister of Pakistan from 6 November 1999 to 15 ...
, Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh
Abdul Hafeez Sheikh is a Pakistani economist and politician who served as Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Affairs from 11 December 2020 to 29 March 2021. Previously, he served as an advisor to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue fr ...
as a new Finance Minister. Early attempts were to discontinue the nationalisation programme by Gillani's government and instead replacing it with a new system based on state capitalism. The state-owned corporations were set off to privatisation menu and his government approved a new menu of privatisation based on public private partnership (PPP) with transfer of management control and 26% shares of 21 state owned enterprises (SOEs). No timetable was given instead his government announced that the privatisation process would be completed when international market would be feasible. During his first years of government, Gillani's government obtained unprecedented loans from International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster globa ...
which increased the level of poverty in the country.
In January 2012, Prime minister Gillani announced the "economic sector have been achieved during the first six months of the current fiscal due to the prudent policies of the present government". In the parliament, Gillani pointed out that the fiscal deficit had come down from 9.4% to 7.6% and inflation that had reached 25% had been reduced to 9.7% during December 2011. In a policy statement, Gillani stated that the "country's GDP growth rate will be 4% basically due to the enhanced agricultural production and the web of taxation has been increased". The tax collection in 2011 was more 27% comparing to 2010. An unsuccessful attempt was carried out by Gillani's government to privatise the mega-state corporations, particularly the power sector; major nationalised industries such as WAPDA
The Pakistan Water & Power Development Authority (WAPDA; ur, ) is a government-owned public utility maintaining power and water in Pakistan, although it does not manage thermal power. WAPDA includes Tarbela and Mangla dams among its resources. ...
, IESCo, TESCo
Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. In 2011 it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues and the ninth-largest in th ...
, PEPCo
The Potomac Electric Power Company (PEPCO) is an American utility company that supplies electric power to the city of Washington, D.C. and to surrounding communities in Maryland. It is owned by Exelon.
The company's current trademarked slogan i ...
were proposed by the finance ministry to privatise the power distribution companies. Major worker's strike were initiated by the central labour unions, and after receiving much criticism, his government halted the privatisation programme of energy sector, and nationalised the remaining power sector industries due to public pressure.
According to the calculation performed by Transparency International
Transparency International e.V. (TI) is a German registered association founded in 1993 by former employees of the World Bank. Based in Berlin, its nonprofit and non-governmental purpose is to take action to combat global corruption with civil ...
(TI), Pakistan has lost an unbelievably high amount, more than Rs 8,500 billion (Rs 8.5 trillion or US$94 billion), in corruption, tax evasion and bad governance during the last four years of Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani's tenure. An adviser of TI acknowledged that "Pakistan does not need even a single penny from the outside world if it effectively checks the menace of corruption and ensures good governance". The Transparency International also noted that the four years of the present regime under Gilani had been the worst in terms of corruption and bad governance in the country's history.
After the recognition of failure of privatisation programme, Gillani gave authorisation of controversial nationalisation programme after a cabinet meeting in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the northwestern region of the country, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ...
on 15 December 2011. Under this programme, three major and giant corporations, Steel Mills
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel. It may be an integrated steel works carrying out all steps of steelmaking from smelting iron ore to rolled product, but may also be a plant where steel semi-finished ...
, Pakistan Railways
Pakistan Railways ( ur, ) is the national, state-owned railway company of Pakistan. Founded in 1861 and headquartered in Lahore, it owns of track across Pakistan, stretching from Torkham to Karachi, offering both freight and passenger servi ...
and Pakistan International Airlines
Pakistan International Airlines ( ur, ; abbreviated PIA, ur, ) is an international airline that serves as the national flag carrier of Pakistan under the administrative control of the Secretary to the Government of Pakistan for Aviation. It ...
(PIA), were brought down under the government ownership, in an attempt to restructure, and made profitable.
On 1 June 2012, prime minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani claimed that the government was committed to resolving the energy crisis and achieving energy security for the country, adding that Pakistan's power sector was presently facing a wide demand-supply gap, which had necessitated the enhancement of generation capacity as well as related infrastructure.
In spite of many attempts to produce effective outcomes, the dramatic high rise in suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...
, corruption, national security, high unemployment, and without the sustainable economic policies along with compilation of other factors, the country's economy re-entered in the " era of stagflation" (a virtual period that country had seen in 1990s earlier). The Pakistan economy
Pakistan is a low income developing country. Its economy is the 23rd-largest worldwide in terms of GDP based on purchasing power parity (PPP). According to a 2021 estimate, the Country has a population of 227 million people ( 5th-largest w ...
slowed down dramatically to ~4.09% as compared to 8.96%—9.0% presided under his predecessor, Shaukat Aziz
Shaukat Aziz ( ur, ; born 6 March 1949) is a Pakistani former banker and financier who served as 17th prime minister of Pakistan from 28 August 2004 to 15 November 2007, as well as the finance minister of Pakistan from 6 November 1999 to 15 ...
in 2004–08; while the yearly growth rate has come down from a long-term average of 5.0% to ~2.0%, though it did not reached to negative level. Calculation performed by the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics
The Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (popularly known as PIDE) () is a post-graduate research institute and a public policy think tank located in the vicinity of Islamabad, Pakistan.
Founded in 1957 by the Government of Pakist ...
, it pointed out that the "nation's currency in circulation as a percentage of total deposits is 31%, which is very high as compared to India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
", where 40.0% of the population fell under the line of poverty, with 16.0% rise in the inflation during his four years of presiding over the country. The new strict and tight monetary policy could not tame the soaring inflation, it did stagnate the economic growth. One economist maintained that stagflation took place when the tight monetary policy did not encourage the strong private sector
The private sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government.
Employment
The ...
to play a key part in growth. Analyzing the stagflation problem, the PIDE observed that a major cause of continuous era of stagflation in Pakistan was lack of co-ordination between fiscal and monetary authorities.
Domestic policies
First public speech as Prime minister
On 19 July 2008 at 11:06 pm (Pakistan Standard Time
Pakistan Standard Time ( ur, , abbreviated as PKT) is UTC+05:00 hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. The time zone is in use during standard time in Asia.
History
Pakistan had been following UTC+05:30 since 1907 (during the British Raj) ...
), Gillani appeared on Pakistan Television
Pakistan Television Corporation ( ur, ; reporting name: PTV) is the Pakistani state-owned broadcaster. Pakistan entered the television broadcasting age in 1964, with a pilot television station established at Lahore.
Background
Historical co ...
(PTV) in his first address to the nation. The main points in his address were focused on the crisis of flour shortage, load-shedding, terrorism and extremism
Extremism is "the quality or state of being extreme" or "the advocacy of extreme measures or views". The term is primarily used in a political or religious sense to refer to an ideology that is considered (by the speaker or by some implied share ...
, restoration of judges, economic downslide and, above all, inflation and unemployment in the country.
2008 assassination attempt
Gillani escaped an assassination attempt on 3 September 2008, when unidentified gunmen fired shots at his motorcade near the garrison city ofRawalpindi
Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's ...
, officials said. The shooting occurred shortly after Gillani was returning from an official visit to the eastern city of Lahore. His motorcade was going to Islamabad from the high-security Chaklala military airbase in Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi ( or ; Urdu, ) is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. It is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad, and third largest in Punjab after Lahore and Faisalabad. Rawalpindi is next to Pakistan's ...
. A spokesman for the Prime Minister's House said Gillani and members of his staff had escaped unhurt and were safe. He said police had been put on high alert and an investigation launched into the incident. The unidentified assailants fired at Gillani's motorcade on a highway. At least two shots hit the Prime Minister's bulletproof vehicle, TV channels quoted officials as saying. State-run PTV beamed footage of the damage caused by the bullets to the window of the driver's door of the vehicle. Reports said the incident occurred at a spot where former premier and PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif's motorcade was fired at on 27 December last year, shortly before Pakistan People's Party (PPP) chairperson Benazir Bhutto was assassinated in a suicide bombing in Rawalpindi.
According to Gillani's press secretary, Zahid Bashir
Zahid Bashir (Urdu: زاہد بشیر) is the former spokesman and press secretary to the Prime Minister of Pakistan.
He had been the chairman of red crescent Punjab, director general of Pakistan post, senior adviser to governor of Punjab and d ...
, a car carrying Gillani was hit by 10 bullets in an attack near 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 ...
on 3 September 2008; Bashir said that Gillani was unharmed. The Pakistan-based Taliban group claimed responsibility for the attack.
Cultural policies and media reforms
Upon coming to power, Gillani emphasised his media policy by noting to the fact that "a free and robust media is the main pillar of the Pakistan Government's media policy." Gillani pushed forward a proposal which amended the "Draconian" laws in past to support media freedom in the country. Gillani followed the cultural and television policy ofBenazir Bhutto
Benazir Bhutto ( ur, بینظیر بُھٹو; sd, بينظير ڀُٽو; Urdu ; 21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th and 13th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 t ...
and in the light of Supreme Court verdict, Gillani ordered PEMRA
Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) ( ur, ) is an independent and constitutionally established federal institution responsible for regulating and issuing channel licenses for establishment of the mass media culture, print a ...
to blackout of Indian television channels, though he ordered the restoration of religious channels. Gillani emphasised the role of Pakistan's media and encouraged the film, drama, and national performing art industry to promote Nationalism in Pakistan, national spirit in the country. In 2011, after the ''Secret Pakistan'' went on-air, Gillani ordered the blocking out of the BBC, BBC World and banned the channel in the country. Banning of BBC World deeply concerned the BBC authorities and the BBC executives immediately met with Gillani to resolve the issue. The BBC World was restored after BBC world ordered a full-fledged investigation into the matter.
In 2011 State of the Union address, state of the union address at the Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
, Gilani spoke highly of culture, stating the historical cultural facts and values of cultural legacy of the country. His state of the union address came in response to American Operation Neptune Spear, secret raid that Death of Osama Bin Laden, killed Osama bin Laden in May 2011. Gillani also participated and celebrated the 60th anniversary of the China–Pakistan relations, bilateral relations between Pakistan and China. During the state visit of Wen Jiabao in 2010, Gillani and Wen proceeded to sign the cultural relations agreements after inaugurating the Pakistan-China Friendship Centre, a centre of excellence of promoting the cultural relations of China and Pakistan.
In 2012, Gilani lastly paid a state visit to the United Kingdom and met with British Prime Minister, British counterpart David Cameron which opened a new chapter in friendship when both the countries decided to transform their bilateral relationship into an "Enhanced Strategic Partnership", covering trade and commerce, economic development, defence and security, culture, education and health. At the press conference with the British counterpart, Gillani termed the Pakistan UK relations, Pakistan-UK relationship as unique, warm and cordial and said it was based on shared values, history, culture and strong people-to-people contact.
Role in Chief Justice restoration and Constitutional amendments
During the judicial crisis of March 2009, Gillani played swift but vital role in ending the serious Lawyers' Movement, judicial crises in the country and is widely given credit with playing a central role in convincing PresidentAsif Ali Zardari
Asif Ali Zardari ( ur, ; sd, ; born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician who is the president of Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians and was the co-chairperson of Pakistan People's Party. He served as the 11th president of Pakistan ...
to restore Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry. This, according to some analysts, has strengthened his role as Prime Minister.
Since 2008, his government and the Parliament of Pakistan, Parliament has carried out major constitutional amendments intended to enhance and strengthen the parliamentary democracy in the country. In April 2010, the Parliament unanimously passed the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan, XVIII Amendment which removed the presidential powers, limiting the role of presidency in the politics, and turned the political system of Pakistan from a semi-presidential to a parliamentary republic. In December 2010, the XIX and XX amendments were passed which gave more power, responsibilities and strengthened the position of the office of prime minister.
Intervention in Afghanistan war
Immediately after holding the office, a multi-pronged strategy for tribal areas and the war in Afghanistan was approved by Gilani after reviewing the progress on the war on terror and the law and order situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Prime Minister Gilani's upcoming and then-newly appointed principal military adviser, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Joint Chiefs General Tariq Majid, presented and formalised a plan and strategy to tackle the insurgency with full military force. Terming as "tri-services framework", the chairman joint chiefs' meeting with the Prime minister, emphasised the role of Pakistan Armed Forces, inter-services to tackle the insurgency with full force, and "joint Pakistan military, army-navy-air force efforts that are synergized within a framework of jointness and inter-operability to meet present and future challenges". After a year of careful study, General Majid's plan was submitted to Gillani who approved the new strategy, which followed the new order of battle and new deployments of combat units of joint Pakistan Army, army-Pakistan Navy, navy-Pakistan Air Force, air force in the north-western region. Unlike the predecessor Shaukat Aziz, Aziz government's deployment, Gilani redeployed fresh combatant units of unified Pakistan Armed Forces to take on the militants hiding in country's tribal areas. A full-scale inter-services' operation, codename ''Operation Black Thunderstorm, Black Thunderstorm'', took place in Swat, Pakistan, Swat in April 2009, which resulted in a complete success, followed by successful infiltration and dismantling of militancy in other areas of Tribal belt (Pakistan), Tribal belt. A final unified operation was commenced in 2009 under codename, ''Operation Rah-e-Nijat, Rah-e-Nijat'', which brought the areas inflicted of terrorism back in the government control. In 2012, Gilani attempted to end the violence and bloodshed in Afghanistan after going to Qatar to meet the top Afghan Taliban, Taliban leadership. Subsequently, Gilani discuss the representatives of Taliban and Qatari government to established an office there. Gillani also secured his place at the negotiations on Afghanistan's future.Foreign relations
After resuming the office, Gillani's foreign policy greatly relaxed the Pakistan-United Kingdom relations, relationships with the United Kingdom, despite British counterpart's "harsh" comments on Pakistan's role in the War on Terror, country's role in the war on terror in 2010. The comments brought hostility between two countries, though Gilani reconciled the matter with the British counterpart. In 2011, British Prime Minister David Cameron visited Pakistan and called for "fresh start" in relations with Pakistan as he offered £650m in aid and better security co-operation. In May 2012, Gilani paid back the trip to United Kingdom and held frank discussion with British counterpart to boost military and strategic ties and to increase bilateral trade, economic growth and development, cultural co-operation, security and education. At the end of trip, Cameron and Gillani launched a Trade and Investment Framework to set out the steps both governments will take to promote investment, support business and achieve the target of increasing bilateral trade to $2.5 billion by 2015. In 2012, he notably called for "Asian Unity" during the attending session of the Boao Forum for Asia in China. Gilani backed the Chinese economic reform and defended a new transit trade agreement with Afghanistan and declaration of most-favoured nation status for India. Gilani called for the united regional co-operation for building the gas pipelines and communication as factors that, in his view, alters the regional situation radically. In 2010, Pakistan-Germany relations, relations with Germany was improved and Gilani succeeded in ratifying the List of free trade agreements, free-trade agreement and the investment treaty to increase the German Foreign direct investment, direct investment in the country. In May 2011, Gillani paid a three-daystate visit
A state visit is a formal visit by a head of state to a foreign country, at the invitation of the head of state of that foreign country, with the latter also acting as the official host for the duration of the state visit. Speaking for the host ...
to France to hold discussion on security co-operation and economic partnership. Gallani met with Nicolas Sarkozy and signed agreement on co-operation on energy, telecommunication, infrastructure development, banking, environment, waste management and defence.
Afghanistan and India
Since assuming office of the premier, Gillani was planning to visit neighbouring Afghanistan, but some unresolved issues like absence of a joint platform to discuss bilateral issues, border conflicts, and different views on the war on terror prevented the trip. Gillani visited Afghanistan with Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani and Inter-Services Intelligence, ISI Director-General Lieutenant-General Ahmed Shuja Pasha. After successful dialogue, it was mutually decided to form a Reconciliation Committee headed by foreign ministers of both the countries. On 22 December 2011, Gillani told an audience at the National Gallery that conspirators were plotting to bring down his government. The 2008 Mumbai attacks, Mumbai attack nearly pushed the two countries to the war-like situation; Gillani promoted to his counterpart to punished and brought the punish perpetrators of such heinous attack to justice. In 2011, Indian Prime minister Manmohan Singh described Gillani as "Man of Peace".United States and Russia
Attempts were made to enhance diplomatic relations with the United States, however as the time passed, Gillani's relations with the United States became somewhat troubled, although United States maintained farewell relations with him. On multiple occasions, he countered the US pressure and backed the military efforts to curbed down the militancy in the region. After receiving heated criticism, Gilani repudiated the US claims that his country was falling short on fighting the war on terrorism. Gilani countered the claims on CNN and maintained that: "If there is any credible, actionable information, please share with us, because are already working with you; my ISI (Pakistan), ISI is working with the Central Intelligence Agency, American CIA. What else do you want?".
In 2011, the relations with United States suffered a major set back and resentment when the United States unilaterally conducted a Death of Osama bin Laden, secret offence (see: ''Operation Neptune Spear, Neptune Spear'') in Abbottabad, which resulted in successful execution of Usama Bin Laden. Immediately after learning the news, Gillani and President Zardari chaired a high-level meeting with the senior Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, military leadership in Islamabad. Gillani reportedly announced that: "We will not allow our soil to be used against any other country for terrorism and therefore, I think it's a great victory, it's a success and I congratulate the success of this operation." Later Gilani blamed the world for their failure to capture bin Laden. The relationship between Pakistan and the United States fell to a new low following the 2011 NATO attack in Pakistan, Salala Incident, with his government and the elite Pakistani military establishment reassessing their diplomatic, political, military and intelligence relationship with the United States.NATO attack allegedly kills 24 Pakistani troops, Yahoo! News All major NATO supply lines to Afghanistan, NATO supply lines were immediately closed leaving the blockaded supply trucks vulnerable to attacks. On 26 November 2011, Gillani's government ordered the US to shut down and vacate the Shamsi Airfield, PAF Base Shamsi in the southwestern Balochistan province within a deadline of 15 days. On 10 December, the troops from the Frontier Corps took full control of the air force base as scheduled, and by 11 December all remaining American staff were evacuated. Prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani informed the cabinet that Pakistan was at a critical juncture in its relationship with the US and NATO and it was time to make some important decisions."Decisions regarding ties with the US and NATO will be made in the national interest." In December 2011, Gillani reportedly told the BBC interviewer that "his country does not trust the United States, and the feeling is mutual". Although, he did goaded that relations were important and maintained: "We are working together and still we don't trust each other... we should have more confidence in each other..". The Pakistan-Russia relations, relations with Russia were pushed to level of intensity of bilateral relations, which he termed it as "''New Momentum''". In 2012, Gillani publicly greets Vladimir Putin for successfully contesting in 2012 Russian presidential election, Russian presidential elections. In 2011, Prime minister Yousaf Raza Gillani and Russian Prime minister (now President) Vladimir Putin held a frank discussion in a cordial atmosphere on 10th Heads of Government meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. Gilani successfully convinced Russia finance and invest in the large energy projects including Central Asia-South Asia 1000 (CASA-1000) to allow the international transition of the power generation from Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan to Pakistan. Russia has provided US$500 million for the CASA-1000 for the power transmission project. In 2011, both countries initiated the work on the framework n the proposed Free Trade Agreement and currency swap arrangement to boost bilateral trade and further strengthen their economic ties. On 4 March 2012, only few hours being re-elected, Gilani telephoned Putin and greeted him on his success in the election for the President of Russia, and quoted: "it was a testimony to the confidence the people of Russia had reposed in his leadership".
Legal challenges
Memogate, Mediagate scandals and subsequent conflicts
On 10 October 2011, US-based businessman Mansoor Ijaz wrote in an opinion piece in ''The Financial Times'' that he acted as an intermediary between the Pakistan Government and US administration, with the former requesting the help of the latter to avert a military coup in wake of Death of Osama bin Laden, the unilateral US raid that killed al-Qaeda leader, Osama bin Laden. He said that a senior Pakistan diplomat telephoned him with an urgent request early on 9 May, exactly a week after the raid against bin Laden.
Though the Pakistan Government subsequently rejected his claims, it triggered a storm in the country's political science circles, especially between the civil government and the military. A judicial commission was subsequently appointed to investigate the matter.
Meanwhile, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Chairman joint chiefs Khalid Shameem Wynne, Shameem Wynne's request to the supreme court for an independent probe into the matter was accepted. The court rejected the government's contention that the issue should be investigated by a parliamentary panel.Pak SC to decide on fate of Zardari, Gilani on Monday. The Hindu (15 January 2012). Retrieved 17 January 2012. Tensions between the government and the military reached a peak after Gillani said the armed forces and the intelligence chiefs had acted in an "unconstitutional and illegal" manner by filing affidavits on the memo issue in the Supreme Court. The military reacted within days through a strongly worded statement that said the premier's remarks could have "grievous consequences". Gillani retaliated by sacking Defence Secretary Lieutenant General (retired) Khalid Naeem Lodhi, a confidant of Chief of Army Staff (Pakistan), chief of army staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, Pervez Kiani. He reiterated that the Defence Secretary was removed in accordance with the law as he had made a mistake by not following the government's rules. He maintained that he was only answerable to the Parliament.
Disqualification petition
On 29 March 2012, a civilian resident of Johar Town Lahore, Tariq Ahmed, filed a court petition in the Lahore High Court, seeking to hear the case of disqualification of Yousaf Raza Gillani. The plea was filed in the High Court in which the petitioner took the stance that "Fauzia Gillani— spouse of Prime Minister Gillani received loans of millions of rupees from the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited, Agriculture Development Bank Ltd (ADB) and the National Bank of Pakistan for the two mega-corporation owned by the Gillani family of which Fauzia Gillani served both megacorporation's executive director. None of the loans of millions of rupees were paid back to the banks. The Constitution of Pakistan's Article 63(1)(n) and Article 63(1)(o) provide for a Member of Parliament's disqualification if he/she is a defaulter of a loan of more than PKR 2 million (63(1)(n)) or if his.her spouse or dependents have defaulted on payment of utility bills of more than PKR 10,000 (63(1)(o)). Petitioner pointed out that apart from that in the Statement of Assets and Liabilities (SAL) as of 2007 investment in shares by her spouse, ownership of inherited assets and house in the Defence Housing Authority, Lahore (DHA Lahore), have not been declared in their SAL submission list given to the Election Commission of Pakistan. The court after hearing the petitioner has asked the Deputy Attorney General to assist the Court on next hearing date 4 April 2012. The disqualification petition was put to rest by the ruling of the Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan, Speaker of the National Assembly Fehmida Mirza, Dr. Fehmida Mirza, that the petition does not hold ground.The matter is over after speaker's decision: Gilani, The News International , 29 May 2012.
Conviction on charges of Contempt of Court
On 26 April 2012, Gillani was convicted on the charges ofContempt of Court
Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the cour ...
, becoming Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
's first Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
to be convicted while holding office. He was sentenced to be held in custody till the rising of court, a symbolic sentence lasting 30 seconds. The verdict was a short order and the full verdict of the court (over 70 pages) had been reserved, and was handed over after few days' time. Gillani's lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan announced that the Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
shall file an appeal against the Supreme Court of Pakistan, Supreme Court's verdict once the full verdict is handed over, despite opposition parties urgings. However, Gilani refused to step down.
On 28 May 2012, the issue of the disqualification of the Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
was put to rest after a ruling by Speaker
Speaker may refer to:
Society and politics
* Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly
* Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture
* A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially:
** In ...
of 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 ...
Dr. Fehmida Mirza, to not to send the disqualification reference to the Election Commission of Pakistan.
Subsequently, the Prime Minister and his legal team decided not to file a petition against the conviction. Talking to the media representatives, the Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
maintained that he acted to defend the Constitution of Pakistan, which according to the Supreme Court of Pakistan, Supreme Court amounted to contempt of court
Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the cour ...
.
On 24 May 2012, the Pakistan Peoples Party, Peoples Party directed the case to speaker of the National Assembly to review the case of Gillani, in light of the apex court's verdict. The speaker ruled out that, despite being convict, Gillani cannot be disqualified from the provisions of the paragraph Constitution of Pakistan, Article 63(g) or either Constitution of Pakistan, Article 63(h) of the Constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When ...
. Following her rulings, the speaker also decided not to forwarded the reference against Gillani's disqualification to Election Commission of Pakistan, Election Commission. On 29 May, Gillani appeared in media and vigorously defended speaker's decision and quoted: "..(...) The National Assembly Speaker Dr. Fehmida Mirza’s ruling pertaining to the disqualification reference was final and could not be challenged...()...".
Disqualification and ouster
After the Speaker's ruling was made public, the major opposition party in the parliament, thePakistan Muslim League
The Pakistan Muslim League ( ur, ; known as PML), is the name of several different Pakistani political parties that have dominated the right-wing platform in the country.
The Muslim League (a different party) was the party of Pakistan’s ...
, and the non-elected party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), filed two separate petition in the supreme court, challenging the National Assembly Speaker Dr. Fehmida Mirza's ruling to save Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani from disqualification. The petitioners pointed out that Constitution of Pakistan, Article 184(3) of the Constitution stands to "disqualified in light of the apex court's verdict and that he should be barred from performing further duties as the prime minister."
On 6 June 2012, the Supreme Court admitted the petitions and a three-member bench was formed to be headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry to hear the petitions. After hearing petitions by both sides, the notices were sent to prime minister, speaker of the national assembly, and other concerned offices to the case. The hearing of the petitions was subsequently adjourned to 14 June 2012. On 15 June, Gillani's lawyer senator Aitzaz Ahsan defended speaker's move, and argued that "the office of speaker was no more 'a post office' after the 18th Amendment as it had been drastically changed" and that "[the speaker] had used her quasi judicial powers and gave her ruling over the issue with due application of her mind". Ahsan maintained that the prime minister had accepted the conviction but not disqualification. On 17 June, Ahsan concluded that speaker's ruling was in accordance with parliamentary ethics and reiterated that the ruling in the contempt of court case did not refer to a disqualification of the prime minister. Mirza also submitted the written statement in which, she maintained that the court's ruling did not order that a reference on the issue should directly be sent to the Election Commission, and has had the constitutional authority to decide over the disqualification of a member of the assembly. Her written statement was discarded by the supreme court, and reserved the final decision of Gillani's qualification matter. At the end of the proceedings, the chief justice marked that the petitions had stated that a "convicted person" was representing the people; the prime minister represented the public and not a party. Minutes before adjourning the court, the chief justice quoted: "The fate of the people was in the hands of a man who had been convicted by the Supreme Court... (...)..".
Finally on 19 June 2012, the Supreme Court of Pakistan ousted and further disqualified Prime Minister Gillani citing the earlier conviction on 26 April 2012. The Supreme Court in its standing orders, said that "Gillani was ineligible to hold the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Prime Minister's office after April 26th conviction" and all orders given by him till date would stand null and void. Consequently, the Election Commission of Pakistan, Election Commission issued the government notification with regards to the disqualification of Gillani. The country's Election Commission of Pakistan, election commission noted that, accepting the rulings of Supreme Court, Gillani was disqualified as a member of parliament with effect immediately from 26 April 2012.
Legacy
Gillani wasPrime Minister of Pakistan
The prime minister of Pakistan ( ur, , romanized: Wazīr ē Aʿẓam , ) is the head of government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen cabinet, despite the president of Paki ...
longer than any other person except Liaquat Ali Khan in a single term. His tenure also witnessed what has been described as a "clash of state institutions, involving the Government of Pakistan, government (executive), the Pakistan military, armed forces and the Supreme Court of Pakistan, judiciary." Gillani is prudently criticised for the prolonged Stagflation in Pakistan, Era of Stagflation, in which fundamental economic problems were ignored, Corruption in Pakistan, corruption, government Financial mismanagement, mismanagement, and issues involving the Law enforcement in Pakistan, law enforcement. Failure of the grand paramilitary 2012 Lyari operation, operation in Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
further damaged Gilani's position in the public circles. During Raja Parvez Ashraf, Pervez Ashraf's tenure as leader, there was an increase in criticism of the Gillanian years, even after the National Reconciliation Ordinance, NRO squabble was eventually resolved in the government headed by Pervez Ashraf.
See also
*List of international prime ministerial trips made by Yousaf Raza Gilani *2008 Pakistani general election *Supreme Court of Pakistan
The Supreme Court of Pakistan ( ur, ; ''Adālat-e-Uzma Pākistān'') is the apex court in the judicial hierarchy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
Established in accordance to thePart VIIof the Constitution of Pakistan, it has ultimate a ...
*Corrupt politics
References
External links
Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani
official Pakistan government site
Yousaf Raza Gilani – a profile
''Daily Times (Pakistan), Daily Times'', 23 March 2008
Profile: Yousuf Raza Gilani
Syed Shoaib Hasan, ''BBC News'', 17 June 2009 , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Gillani, Yousaf Raza Yousaf Raza Gillani, 1952 births Expelled members of the National Assembly of Pakistan Gilani family, Yousaf Raza Government College University, Lahore alumni Living people Minister of Railways (Pakistan) Pakistan People's Party politicians Pakistani people of Iranian descent Pakistani politicians convicted of crimes Pakistani politicians convicted of corruption Pakistani prisoners and detainees Pakistani Sunni Muslims Pakistani white-collar criminals People from Islamabad People from Multan People of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) People of the insurgency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Politicians from Karachi Prime Ministers of Pakistan Speakers of the National Assembly of Pakistan University of the Punjab alumni