Defence Minister of Pakistan
Encyclopedia
The Defence Minister of Pakistan
heads the Ministry of Defence
, under which serve the three armed forces of the country, Pakistan Army
, Pakistan Air Force
, and Pakistan Navy
. The minister serves in the cabinet of the Prime Minister
, and is required to be a member of Parliament.
In the history of the country, the defence portfolio has usually been headed by the head of the government, be that the President or Prime Minister of the country. The first defence minister, not also to be the head of the government, was General Ayub Khan, then Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army
. From the 1980 onwards, the defence minister became a unique personality, and presently it is considered one of the big five cabinet portfolio along with the Prime Minister
, Finance Minister
, Foreign Minister
, Interior Minister portfolios.
The current Defence Minister is Ahmad Mukhtar who took over on 31 March, 2008.
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
heads the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (Pakistan)
The Ministry of Defence , is a federal government ministry tasked with coordinating and supervising all major government agencies and federal departments of the government relating directly to National security and the Pakistan Defense Forces...
, under which serve the three armed forces of the country, Pakistan Army
Pakistan Army
The Pakistan Army is the branch of the Pakistani Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The Pakistan Army came into existence after the Partition of India and the resulting independence of Pakistan in 1947. It is currently headed by General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. The Pakistan...
, Pakistan Air Force
Pakistan Air Force
The Pakistan Air Force is the leading air arm of the Pakistan Armed Forces and is primarily tasked with the aerial defence of Pakistan with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and the Pakistan Navy. The PAF also has a tertiary role of providing strategic air transport...
, and Pakistan Navy
Pakistan Navy
The Pakistan Navy is the naval warfare/service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. Pakistan's Navy is responsible for Pakistan's coastline along the Arabian Sea and the defense of important civilian harbors and military bases...
. The minister serves in the cabinet of the Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Pakistan
The Prime Minister of Pakistan , is the Head of Government of Pakistan who is designated to exercise as the country's Chief Executive. By the Constitution of Pakistan, Pakistan has the parliamentary democratic system of government...
, and is required to be a member of Parliament.
In the history of the country, the defence portfolio has usually been headed by the head of the government, be that the President or Prime Minister of the country. The first defence minister, not also to be the head of the government, was General Ayub Khan, then Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army
Pakistan Army
The Pakistan Army is the branch of the Pakistani Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The Pakistan Army came into existence after the Partition of India and the resulting independence of Pakistan in 1947. It is currently headed by General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. The Pakistan...
. From the 1980 onwards, the defence minister became a unique personality, and presently it is considered one of the big five cabinet portfolio along with the Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Pakistan
The Prime Minister of Pakistan , is the Head of Government of Pakistan who is designated to exercise as the country's Chief Executive. By the Constitution of Pakistan, Pakistan has the parliamentary democratic system of government...
, Finance Minister
Finance Minister of Pakistan
The Finance Minister of Pakistan heads the Ministry of Finance and serves in the Prime Minister's cabinet. The Minister is required to be a member of the Parliament.The current finance minister is Abdul Hafeez Shaikh...
, Foreign Minister
Foreign Minister of Pakistan
The Foreign Minister of Pakistan heads the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The current Foreign Minister is Hina Rabbani Khar who took office as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs on 11 February 2011, and as full Minister of Foreign Affairs on 20 July, 2011...
, Interior Minister portfolios.
The current Defence Minister is Ahmad Mukhtar who took over on 31 March, 2008.
List of Defence Ministers of Pakistan
| Name of Defence Minister | Entered Office | Left Office |
|---|---|---|
| Liaquat Ali Khan Liaquat Ali Khan For other people with the same or similar name, see Liaqat Ali Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan was a Pakistani statesman who became the first Prime Minister of Pakistan, Defence minister and Commonwealth, Kashmir Affairs... |
15 August, 1947 | 16 October, 1951 |
| Khawaja Nazimuddin Khawaja Nazimuddin Hajji Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin, KCIE , was the second Governor-General of Pakistan, and later the second Prime Minister of Pakistan as well.-Early life:... |
24 October, 1951 | 17 April, 1953 |
| Muhammad Ali Bogra Muhammad Ali Bogra Nawabzada Mohammed Ali Bogra was a Pakistani statesman of Bengali origin, who served as the third Prime Minister of Pakistan from 1953 until 1955.-Early life:... |
17 April, 1953 | 24 October, 1954 |
| General General A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given.... Ayub Khan |
24 October, 1954 | 11 August, 1955 |
| Chaudhry Muhammad Ali Chaudhry Muhammad Ali Chaudhry Muhammad Ali Chaudhry Muhammad Ali Chaudhry Muhammad Ali (Punjabi, ; (July 15, 1905 - December 2, 1980) was a Pakistani statesman who served as the fourth Prime Minister of Pakistan from 1955 to 1956.-Early life:... |
11 August, 1955 | 12 September, 1956 |
| Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy was a Pakistani-Bengali politician and statesman who served as 5th Prime Minister of Pakistan from 1956 till 1957, and a close associate of Mohammad Ali Jinnah and Liaquat Ali Khan, first Prime minister of Pakistan... |
12 September, 1956 | 18 October, 1957 |
| Mian Mumtaz Daultana Mian Mumtaz Daultana Mian Mumtaz Daultana he was the renown activist of "Teherek-e-Azadi" and one amongst the close friends of Quaid e Azam M Ali Jinah. His uncle Sir Shahab-ud-Din was the speaker of punjab assembly before separation of sub continent. and he was the 2nd Chief Minister of Punjab from 1951 to 1953, when... |
18 October, 1957 | 18 December, 1957 |
| Feroz Khan Noon Feroz Khan Noon Malik Sir Feroz Khan Noon, KCSI, KCIE, Kt was a politician from Pakistan.-Early life:Born on 18th of June 1893 at village Hamoka,tehsil Khushab, Punjab. He was educated at Aitchison College, Lahore.... |
18 December, 1957 | 8 April, 1958 |
| Muhammad Ayub Khuhro Muhammad Ayub Khuhro Khan Bahadur Muhammad Ayub Khoro was a politician from Sindh, Pakistan, who became its first Chief Minister after independence of Pakistan and subsequently serving two additional terms in the 1950s. He later became the Defence Minister in the government of PM Feroz Khan Noon, before the imposition... |
8 April, 1958 | 7 October, 1958 |
| Ayub Khan | 28 October, 1958 | 21 October, 1966 |
| Vice Admiral Vice Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral... (R) Afzal Rahman Khan Afzal Rahman Khan Vice-Admiral Afzal Rahman Khan , , was a high profile military official who served as the Interior and Defence Minister under the military government of Field Marshal Ayub Khan... |
12 October, 1966 | 5 April, 1969 |
| Yahya Khan Yahya Khan General Agha Mohammad Yahya Khan Qizilbash, H.Pk, HJ, S.Pk, psc was the third President of Pakistan from 1969 to 1971, following the resignation of Ayub Khan... |
5 April, 1969 | 20 December, 1971 |
| Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was 9th Prime Minister of Pakistan from 1973 to 1977, and prior to that, 4th President of Pakistan from 1971 to 1973. Bhutto was the founder of the Pakistan Peoples Party — the largest and most influential political party in Pakistan— and served as its chairman until his... |
24 December, 1971 | 5 July, 1977 |
| Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq , was the 4th Chief Martial Law Administrator and the sixth President of Pakistan from July 1977 to his death in August 1988... |
14 January, 1978 | 27 August, 1978 |
| Mir Ali Ahmed Khan Talpur | 27 August, 1978 | 26 February, 1985 |
| Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq , was the 4th Chief Martial Law Administrator and the sixth President of Pakistan from July 1977 to his death in August 1988... |
26 February, 1985 | 24 March, 1985 |
| Muhammad Khan Junejo Muhammad Khan Junejo Muhammad Khan Junejo was the tenth Prime Minister of Pakistan.-Early life:He was born at Sindhri in Tharparkar of Sindh. He belongs to Sindhi Muslim Rajput family of Junejo clan. Junejo started his political career at the age of twenty one... |
24 March, 1985 | 29 May, 1988 |
| Mahmoud Haroon Mahmoud Haroon Mahmoud Abdullah Haroon Urdu: محمود ہارون was a veteran Pakistani politician with career spanning over five decades and chairman of the Dawn Media Group. He was the second son of Haji Sir Abdullah Haroon, the first being Yusuf Haroon, one of the leaders of Pakistan Movement... (caretaker) |
9 June, 1988 | 1 December, 1988 |
| Benazir Bhutto Benazir Bhutto Benazir Bhutto was a democratic socialist who served as the 11th Prime Minister of Pakistan in two non-consecutive terms from 1988 until 1990 and 1993 until 1996.... |
4 December, 1988 | 6 August, 1990 |
| Ghous Ali Shah | 10 September, 1991 | 17 July, 1993 |
| Aftab Shaban Mirani Aftab Shaban Mirani Aftab Shaban Mirani is a politician from Shikarpur, Sindh, Pakistan. The former defence minister is now a representative for the NA-202 constituency.- Family :Aftab Shahban Mirani's wife Ms Safia Aftab Mirani died on October 5, 2007... |
19 October, 1993 | 5 November, 1996 |
| Shahid Hamid (caretaker) | 5 November, 1996 | 17 February, 1997 |
| Nawaz Sharif Nawaz Sharif Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif is a Pakistani conservative politician and steel magnate who served as 12th Prime Minister of Pakistan in two non-consecutive terms from November 1990 to July 1993, and from February 1997 to October 12, 1999... |
17 February, 1997 | 12 October, 1999 |
| Pervez Musharraf Pervez Musharraf Pervez Musharraf , is a retired four-star general who served as the 13th Chief of Army Staff and tenth President of Pakistan as well as tenth Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee. Musharraf headed and led an administrative military government from October 1999 till August 2007. He ruled... |
12 October, 1999 | 23 November, 2002 |
| Rao Sikandar Iqbal Rao Sikandar Iqbal -Biography:Born in 1943, Iqbal took his primary education in Quetta, after which he joined the Forman Christian College in Lahore. He held a LLB from Punjab University Law College, and he was the Secretary General of the Students Union of the University .... |
23 November, 2002 | 15 November, 2007 |
| Salim Abbas Jilani (caretaker) | 16 November, 2007 | 25 March, 2008 |
| Ahmad Mukhtar | 31 March, 2008 | Incumbent |
See also
- Constitution of PakistanConstitution of PakistanThe Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is the supreme law of Pakistan. Known as the Constitution of 1973, it was drafted by the government of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and, following additions by the opposition parties, was approved by the legislative assembly on April 10, 1973...
- President of PakistanPresident of PakistanThe President of Pakistan is the head of state, as well as figurehead, of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Recently passed an XVIII Amendment , Pakistan has a parliamentary democratic system of government. According to the Constitution, the President is chosen by the Electoral College to serve a...
- Prime Minister of PakistanPrime Minister of PakistanThe Prime Minister of Pakistan , is the Head of Government of Pakistan who is designated to exercise as the country's Chief Executive. By the Constitution of Pakistan, Pakistan has the parliamentary democratic system of government...
- Ministry of Defence Pakistan
- Foreign Minister of PakistanForeign Minister of PakistanThe Foreign Minister of Pakistan heads the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The current Foreign Minister is Hina Rabbani Khar who took office as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs on 11 February 2011, and as full Minister of Foreign Affairs on 20 July, 2011...
- Finance Minister of PakistanFinance Minister of PakistanThe Finance Minister of Pakistan heads the Ministry of Finance and serves in the Prime Minister's cabinet. The Minister is required to be a member of the Parliament.The current finance minister is Abdul Hafeez Shaikh...
- Interior Minister of Pakistan
- Ministry of Defense Production