GILGIT: Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday announced to personally run the party’s campaign for elections to the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly.

He, however, regretted that elections in GB were being held despite the Covid-19 pandemic unlike the Sindh province where elections on a few constituencies were not held due to the prevailing situation.

Bilawal Bhutto said if the GB elections went ahead according to the schedule then he would personally run the party’s campaign.

He was addressing a meeting of the party leaders of GB through a video link, according to a press release issued by the PPP media cell here.

He claimed that the PPP would win the elections.

The meeting was attended by Syed Mehdi Shah, Amjad Hussain Advocate, Sadia Danish, Eng Ismail, Mohammad Moosa, Mohammad Jafar, Mohammad Ali Aftab, Imran Nazir and others.

The PPP leaders apprised the chairman of the political situation in GB and the government’s incapacity to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic.

Bilawal Bhutto directed the PPP candidates to run their election campaign with proper SOPs.

Meanwhile, a 12-member caretaker Gilgit-Baltistan cabinet was sworn-in the other day.

Governor Raja Jalal Hussain Maqpoon took the oath during a ceremony held at the Governor House. Caretaker chief minister Mir Afzal, civil and military officials were in attendance.

Prime Minister Imran Khan as Chairman GB Council had appointed the 12-member caretaker cabinet on the advice of caretaker Chief Minister Mir Afzal.

The ministers include Aftab Ismail Khan, Sarwar Shah, Shaukat Rasheed, Nasir Hussain, Mohammad Ali Khan, Mohammad Yasin, Syed Shabiul Hasnain, Mohammad Ali Qaid, Johar Ali, Rajab Ali, Imam Yar Baig and Abdul Jehan.

Meanwhile, two advisers to the caretaker chief minister have also been appointed. According to a notification, Governor Raja Jalal Hussain Maqpoon on recommendations of the caretaker chief minister appointed noted female mountaineer Samina Baig and Waqar Abbas as caretaker advisers.

FOUR OF A FAMILY KILLED: Four members of a shepherd family were killed and one woman injured when a landslide hit them here the other day.

According to police, a woman, her daughter, a son and her father in law, residents of Diamer district, were staying along the Jutial Nullah some 30 kilometres from Gilgit town with their cattle, when a landslide triggered by lightning on the nearby mountain hit them.

An army helicopter reached the area as it has no road access, and shifted the injured woman and four bodies to the CMH Gilgit.

The condition of injured woman is said to be stable.

Later, the bodies were handed over to relatives.

Published in Dawn, July 1st, 2020