- Source: Zartaj Gul
Zartaj Gul Wazir (Urdu: زرتاج گُل وزیر) is a Pakistani politician who served as Minister of State for Climate Change, in Imran Khan ministry from 5 October 2018 until 10 April 2022 when Imran Khan was ousted by a no-confidence motion. She remained a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan between August 2018 and April 2022, and again from 29 February 2024 from Constituency NA-185 Dera Ghazi Khan-II she was elected from Constituency in 2024 Pakistani General Elections held on 8 February 2024.
Early life and education
Gul hails from North Waziristan, born on 17 October 1984 Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to Ahmad Wazir, chief engineer of WAPDA and belongs to Wazir tribe.
She obtained her early education in her native town Bannu and Miramshah before moving to Lahore with her family. She attended Queen Mary College for her undergraduate studies and then National College of Arts for her postgraduate studies. She did Textile Designing from National College of Arts.
After completing her education, she joined Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and became a volunteer with Insaf Student Forum (ISF) in 2005.
She moved to Dera Ismail Khan after getting married in 2010.
Political career
Gul ran for the seat of the National Assembly of Pakistan as a candidate of PTI from Constituency NA-172 (Dera Ghazi Khan-II) in 2013 Pakistani general election but was unsuccessful. She received 38,643 against 49,142 votes of Hafiz Abdul Kareem and lost the seat.
She was elected to the National Assembly as a candidate of PTI from NA-191 (Dera Ghazi Khan-III) in 2018 Pakistani general election. She received 79,817 votes and defeated Awais Leghari.
On 5 October 2018, she was inducted into the federal cabinet of Prime Minister Imran Khan and was appointed as Minister of State for Climate Change.
As a member of the National Assembly and as a Minister, she advocated for gender equality and argued that Islam guarantees rights for women. During a press conference, Zartaj Gul described Imran Khan as a 'symbol of women empowerment' and defended his comments on sexual violence. Khan had previously stated in an interview that “If a woman is wearing very few clothes, it will have an impact on the men, unless they're robots. I mean it's common sense.” These remarks were widely criticized by opposition leaders and rights groups, who accused him of victim-blaming and promoting a misogynistic narrative, while Zartaj Gul and other members of his party argued that his comments were taken out of context and were part of a broader discussion on societal issues and the role of modesty.
She was re-elected to National Assembly of Pakistan in 2024 Pakistani General Elections, as an independent candidate supported by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) from NA-185 Dera Ghazi Khan-II and received 94,927 votes and defeat his election rival Mehmood Qadir Khan received 39,235 votes. After the official results are coming Zartaj declared as winner, following the defeat of PML(N) Candidate Mehmood Qadir Khan by a heavy margin of 55,000 plus votes, he requested the Lahore High Court for a recount in the Constituency.
On 6 October 2024, she was arrested by police after a raid on her house and was taken to an undisclosed location. Pictures of her following her arrest went viral, showing her barefoot. PTI lawyer Mir Fida Hussain stated that she was unwell and asleep at the time of the raid and was unable to wear her shawl. She was released 3 days later on 9 October 2024.
Controversy
In June 2019, Gul was criticized by the media for allegedly using her position to influence NACTA in the appointment of her sister as a director in the authority. Gul's principal staff officer wrote an official letter to the Secretary Interior following up on a "telephonic conversation with Ms Zartaj Gul, Minister of State for Climate, regarding the appointment of Ms Shabnam Gul in NACTA". Prime Minister Imran Khan was said to have taken notice of the situation, and asked Gul to withdraw her letter but Gul's sister was still appointed to the position. NACTA later released a statement "clarifying" that the appointment of Shabnam Gul, Zataj Gul's sister, was merit-based even though she had no prior experience in the field. No action was taken against Gul for having sent the letter in the first place even though Imran Khan's special assistant made a statement saying that no one in the PTI government can promote their relatives/friends by using their positions.
References
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