Ishaq Dar takes oath as senator amid opposition protest

Ishaq Dar takes oath as senator amid opposition protest

ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) senior leader and former Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Tuesday took oath as senator amid protest by opposition. Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani administered the oath to Ishaq Dar. During the swearing-in ceremony, PTI members gathered near the rostrum and chanted slogans and tore the copies of the agenda of the meeting and surrounded the dais, in a bid to register their protest after which the chairman called in security personnel.

Leader of the House in the Senate, Azam Nazir Tarar welcomed the PML-N stalwart and expressed the hope that Dar would steer the country out of challenges. He urged PTI members to respect the law as the accountability court had suspended the permanent arrest warrants of Ishaq Dar till October 7, in a reference pertaining to the holding of assets beyond known sources of income.

It is pertinent to mention that Dar reached Pakistan on Monday along with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif after a self-exile of more than five years. Speaking to reporters at Nur Khan airbas, he said that Nawaz Sharif and the premier had tasked him to take over the portfolio of the finance minister. “I will try my best to fulfill all the responsibilities. We will try to take out the country from the economic swap it is stuck in […] the way we did in 1998-1999 and 2013-2014.” Dar further expressed hope that “we will now head in a positive direction”. His return comes a day after PML-N leader Miftah Ismail tendered his resignation to senior party leaders in London. Subsequently, a statement released after the meeting confirmed that Nawaz Sharif and PM Shehbaz had nominated Dar as the finance minister.