LAHORE, Nov 18: Caretaker chief ministers of Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan will take oath of offices on Monday after the three provincial assemblies were dissolved on Sunday night on completion of their five-year term.

Governor Khalid Maqbool dissolved the Punjab assembly. It is learnt that Justice (retd) Ejaz Nisar will head the caretaker provincial government. The cabinet is likely to comprise 21 members.

The Sindh assembly was dissolved at 10pm on Sunday after Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad Khan approved the notification to this effect. The outgoing assembly, which came into being on Dec 12, 2002, was the first provincial assembly to complete its five-year tenure.

Meanwhile, outgoing chief minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim said that in contrast to the past practice when police used to follow an outgoing chief minister and sometimes on returning from a tour he used to be informed that he was no more the chief executive and was stopped from entering the Chief Minister’s House, he was leaving the place in a dignified manner after completing his tenure.

Speaking to officials and employees of the Chief Minister’s House, he said the reversal of the wrong practice the past had been made possible by President Gen Musharraf.

In Quetta, Governor Owais Ahmed Ghani dissolved the Balochistan assembly on the advice of Chief Minister Jam Mir Mohammad Yousuf.

Sardar Mohammad Saleh Bhootani will take the oath as caretaker chief minister of Balochistan at a ceremony to be held at the Governor’s House at 11am on Monday.

Sources told Dawn that the government had chosen Mr Bhootani from a list of three candidates, including former governor Justice (retd) Amirul Mulak Mengal and former bureaucrat Qamar Beg.

“Governor Owais Ghani informed Mr Bhootani about the decision of the government,” they said.

Names for the ministers of caretaker cabinet were yet to be finalised, the sources said, adding that Amjad Rasheed, Barrister Nawabzada Saifullah Magsi, Sardar Ghous Bakhsh Barozai, Ms Roshan Khurshid Buracha, Sardar Sadat Ali Hazara, Mir Arif Jan Mohammad Hasni, Srardar Haider Khan Nasar, Mir Murad Abro, Nawabzada Aurangzeb Jogezai, Ata Mohammad Gul and Abdul Ghafoor Baloch were likely to join the cabinet.