Islamabad, April. The cabinet of newly elected Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif was sworn in Tuesday during a short ceremony.
Acting President Sadiq Sanjrani was sworn in before 34 ministers at the white marble palace known as the Presidency in the capital, Islamabad. Sharif also attended the ceremony. His election on April 11 ousted former Prime Minister Imran Khan, the Associated Press reported.
Sharif’s former political opponents are also part of his coalition government.
The ministerial portfolios are expected to be announced later Tuesday.
Among the prominent lawmakers who joined the government is Khwaja Muhammad Asif, a former defense minister and a member of the Pakistan Muslim League. Several politicians from the party of former president Asif Ali Zardari are also part of the government, including Khurshid Shah and Sherry Rehman.
Sharif ousted Khan through a vote of no confidence in the National Assembly, the lower house of Pakistan’s parliament. Khan has lost his grip on power after his party allies and a key coalition partner abandoned him earlier this month.
Since then, Khan has demanded new elections in rallies, saying the new government was imposed under an American plot, a charge denied by Washington, which the new government in Pakistan says is a set of lies.
MI