ISLAMABAD, Nov 19: The government has appointed Senator Maulana Mohammad Khan Sheerani as the 12th chairman of the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII).

The decision is likely to draw criticism from NGOs and leaders of different sects who have been airing their concerns over the appointment of an active leader of a religious party which is known to represent a particular school of thought.

Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira justified the appointment, saying a “commitment with the JUI-F” had been fulfilled.

In an attempt to ease the fears, he said the CII chief had no veto power and that the council comprised members from all sects.

He expressed the hope that Maulana Sheerani, being a senior council member, would work above sectarian considerations.

According to party sources, the Maulana will retain his seat in the Senate as well as his post as chief of the Balochistan chapter of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam.

The appointment, approved by Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani after a meeting with JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, appears to have been made to appease one of the coalition partners in view of their anger over nominations to the Parliamentary Committee for judges' appointment.

All the four members representing the treasury benches in the committee belong to the PPP.

After his recent meeting with the prime minister, Maulana Fazl had expressed anguish over decisions taken by the government on several issues without consulting the allies.

JUI-F secretary general Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri said the appointment had come after a long wait following the retirement Dr Khalid Masood in July.

“The PPP and the JUI-F had reached an understanding when we joined the coalition that the government would appoint Maulana Sheerani as the council's chairman whenever the tenure of the incumbent chairman ended.”

He said the government had been delaying the appointment on pretext of objections and fears raised by certain NGOs and religious leaders.

He said Syed Khurshid Shah, a Minister belonging to the Pakistan People's Party, had shown him a letter in which fears had been expressed about the controversy over the appointment of a leader of one sect who represented a political party.

Both parties reportedly renegotiated the matter on June 19 and the government agreed to appoint Maulana Sheerani in place of Dr Masood and to consider recommendations made by the council on different occasions.

The JUI-F chief had threatened to quit the coalition if the government did not fulfil it's the promises.

However, Maulana Haideri said the appointment would not deter his party from criticising the Parliamentary Committee's nominations.

No meeting of the council has been held since June.