Retired judge Yar Muhammad was sworn in on Wednesday as the caretaker chief minister of Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) in a ceremony held at the Governor House. He was appointed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif after the GB Assembly completed its five-year tenure on Monday, in accordance with the GB Order 2018, which mandates elections within 60 days of the assembly’s term ending.
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Governor Syed Mehdi Shah administered the oath to Muhammad in a ceremony attended by federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs, Gilgit-Baltistan and Safron Engineer Amir Muqam, along with other political figures, judges, and local administration officials. The GB Services Department Secretary, Usman Ahmed, read out the official notification for the caretaker chief minister’s appointment.
گلگت بلتستان کے نامزد نگراں وزیراعلیٰ جسٹس (ر) یار محمد نے حلف اٹھا لیا pic.twitter.com/WmDK1MVber
— Geo News Urdu (@geonews_urdu) November 26, 2025
The previous GB Assembly elections were held on November 15, 2020, across 24 constituencies, resulting in the PTI forming the government with Khalid Khurshid elected as chief minister. Khurshid was later disqualified in July 2023 by the GB Chief Court for allegedly obtaining a license from the GB Bar Council using a fake degree. Following his disqualification, a coalition government of PTI, PPP, and PML-N members was formed, with Haji Gulbar Khan — an estranged PTI member — taking office as the new chief minister.
Justice (Retd) Yar Muhammad has been appointed the Caretaker Chief Minister of #GilgitBaltistan pic.twitter.com/lssiRdnBmr
— SherZaman (@Sherzaman88) November 24, 2025
During its five-year tenure, the GB Assembly adopted 63 bills and passed 114 resolutions on various issues, including a demand for the federal government to declare GB a provisional province of Pakistan. In the assembly’s final session on Monday, a dozen bills were passed before the term officially ended at midnight, paving the way for the caretaker setup and upcoming elections.
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With Yar Muhammad taking charge as caretaker chief minister, the focus now shifts to ensuring a smooth electoral process and maintaining administrative continuity in the region until the new government is formed.