Balochistan Governor removes Ali Hassan Zehri from ministry

QUETTA: Balochistan Governor Sheikh Jaffar Khan Mandokhail on Thursday removed PPP minister Mir Ali Hassan Zehri from the Sarfaraz Bugti-led provincial cabinet with immediate effect.

According to a notification issued by Balochistan Chief Secretary Shakeel Qadir Khan, the governor, under Article 132(3) of the Constitution and on the advice of the chief minister, removed Mr Zehri, also known as Brohi, from his position as provincial minister.

It is pertinent to mention that Mr Zehri had earlier submitted his resignation to the chief minister. Foll­owing a decision by the Fed­eral Consti­tutional Court, the Election Commi­ssion of Pakistan had also issued a notification suspending his membership of the provincial assembly.

Mr Zehri claimed to be the spokesman for President Asif Ali Zardari in Balochistan. He is also the senior vice president of PPP Balochistan. Mr Zehri contested the Balochistan Assembly election in February 2024 from PB-22 Hub and remained third in the election result against Sardar Muhammad Saleh Bhootani.

However, Mr Zehri, despite finishing third in the election, challenged the result by filing a petition against the winner, Sardar Bhootani, and after various hearings at the tribunal, high court and other courts, he was dec­lared an MPA by the ECP.

After being elected as an MPA, he was inducted into the Balochistan cabinet as adviser to the chief received by Feb 8 be processed under the previous regulations and facilitated by all electricity distribution companies, including K-Electric, under the net metering framework,” the power minister said.

He also issued instructions for immediate implementation to all power distribution companies. “As of Feb 8, a total of 5,165 applications had been submitted across all distribution companies, including K-Electric. The­se applications will collectively add 250.822MW of capacity to the national grid,” an official statement said.

Sources said some of the minister’s close aides opposed the move, arguing it would add to the roughly 6,900MW already installed under net-metering and could encourage litigation by future applicants against the new regulations.

However, the minister contended that net capacity addition in this category was only 250MW, but even if it was 1,500MW equivalent of applications, the government was legally and morally bound to honour its own regulations and commitments.

He was of the view that, within a legal framework, these applicants had accrued rights which could not be denied. However, once the new regulations are notified and in place, citizens will be free to make fresh investments.

The sources said all the Discos and K-Electric were required during the meeting to re-verify their prosumer applications received before Feb 8 and sign respective documents to avoid any exclusions or inclusions on political, financial or other influences.

“The decision by the federal power minister has removed uncertainties surrounding the pending applications,” the Power Division said, adding that the minister directed that transparency be maintained in the processing of all requests. Consumers have also been advised to register any complaints on the issue by calling the helpline at 118.

Earlier, Nepra published draft regulations for public comments on Dec 12, 2025, which prompted the power companies to stop entertaining applications under the previous regulations in place since 2015. The proposal attracted public backlash over both the proposed changes and the retrospective curtailment of benefits

Following widespread criticism, including from parliamentary bodies, the prime minister intervened and restored contractual benefits for existing licensees. How­ever, criticism persisted over the treatment of applications submitted during the period between the draft’s issuance and the formal notification of the new regulations, which took effect from Feb 9.

During public hearings at Nepra, several interveners had also registered their complaints that, despite the regulator seeking only feedback, distribution companies had already stopped accepting new solar applications and were discouraging online registrations through various means.

Nepra Chairman Was­eem Mukhtar and Member (Development) Maqsood Anwar declared such unilateral actions illegal and assured participants they would not be allowed to continue. They said the Power Division should have acted in line with assurances previously given by the power minister, and that the regulator would ensure a reversal of the measures and take strict action against those responsible.

Published in Dawn, February 20th, 2026

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