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| Quetta Railway Station, Quetta, Balochistan, Pakistan (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Nawab Muhammad Aslam Khan Raisani (Urdu: نواب محمد اسلم خان رئیسانی) (born July 5, 1955 in Sarawan, Balochistan) was the Chief Minister of Balochistan from 9 April 2008 till 14 January 2013 after he was sacked by the Prime Minister of Pakistan by imposing Governor Rule after the January 2013 Pakistan bombings. He is also the chief of the Raisani tribe of the Sarawan area.[1] Being the eldest son of late Nawab Ghous Baksh Raisani, he took over as the chief of Raisani tribe. The Raisani tribe is one of the most politically influential tribes in Baluchistan, the largest province of Pakistan by area. On Thursday November 1, 2012, media reports claimed that Raisani party's membership had been cancelled by People's Party Kalat Division for continually violating party policies.[2] However, he denied all these reports and said that his party membership had not been cancelled.[3]
He maintains an interest in developing his own landed estates and is President of the Chamber of Agriculture in Balochistan,[4] and is working to introduce modern technology and agricultural methods on his own estates and those of his friends and allies[citation needed]. He also has an interest in preserving wildlife and is a lifetime member of the Wildlife Conservation Society[5]
He has been elected as a member of the Provincial Assembly of Balochistan four times. He was elected Chief Minister of Balochistan on April 9, 2008.[6]
Political career
Nawab Aslam Raisani started his political career with Pakistan National Party. He was first elected to Baluchistan Provincial Assembly in1989. He became the Parliamentary Leader of the party in the provincial assembly. He was a member of the provincial assembly until 1990 when the provincial assemblies and National Assembly of Pakistan were dissolved by then, President of Pakistan Ghulam Ishaq Khan. He was again elected to Baluchistan provincial assembly in 1990, through Pakistan National Party's ticket, when elections were held. In 1999, he joined Pakistan People's Party and has remained its member since. He was elected to Baluchistan Provincial Assembly for the third time in 1999. In the general elections of 2008, he was elected for the fourth time to Baluchistan Provincial Assembly from the constituency of Mastung/Quetta (PB-38) and became the parliamentary leader in the assembly. He was elected as the Chief Minister of Baluchistan on 9 April 2008 unopposed.Finally he Dismissal from Chief Minister of Baluchistan on 14 January 2013 under the article 234 constitution of Pakistan.
Controversies
Aslam Raisani has been involved in several controversies: in mid-2010 he stated that he holds a master's degree in political science. When questioned by reporters investigating false claims of educational credentials in Pakistani politics he stated "A degree is a degree! Whether fake or genuine, it's a degree! It makes no difference!";[7] subsequently, the same year, he rejected allegations of corruption against him by asserting that there was 'nothing wrong' with practicing this.[8]
Governance
Since September 2012, there has been an increasing outcry against Raisani, following his government's failure to check the poor law and order position in Baluchistan, resulting in the mass murder of the Shiah Hazaras community there[9] Many people have accused the government of doing nothing in missing persons case and majority of the people still remain missing. There have been numerous instances of people disappearing from Baluchistan and never returning. Many accuse government of harbouring these activities. In addition to this, people accuse federal agencies of Pakistan to be involved in the abduction of suspected separatist militants with Government of Baluchistan also being involved .[10][11]
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