Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Murtaza Wahab was sworn in as the mayor of Karachi on Monday after he won the elections and defeated Jamaat-e-Islami’s (JI) Hafiz Naeem Ur Rehman.
Wahab’s oath was administered by Provincial Election Commissioner Sindh Ejaz Anwar Chohan. Following Wahab’s oath, his deputy Salman Abdullah also took oath of office. The mayoral elections in the city were held on June 15 in which the PPP leader secured 173 votes while the JI’s Karachi chief bagged 160 votes. The dramatic turnaround was followed by JI allegations that Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Sindh administration used muscle power and money to ensure victory for their candidates, which the PPP leaders including Wahab rejected.
Following Wahab’s win, the workers of PPP and JI clashed outside the Arts Council – which was the polling station for the mayoral election. The oath-taking ceremony of the mayor and deputy mayor was attended by PPP Chairman and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, various ministers and advisors. Newly-elected Mayor Murtaza Wahab was born in Karachi on December 25, 1983. He received his education from Government Commerce College and a law degree from the University of London. Wahab is a lawyer by profession. He has held the position of advisor on law from May 2015 till November 2016. He was also elected unopposed as senator in August 2017, a position he held till retirement in March 2018.
He has also held portfolios such as Anti-Corruption Establishment, environment, climate change, coastal development and information. In 2021, he held the position of administrator of Karachi, legal advisor and spokesperson of the Sindh government. Wahab may have taken oath as the mayor but a petition has been filed against him in the Sindh High Court (SHC) seeking to “de-notify, suspend and cancel” his appointment. In his petition, Muhammad Amir Khan said that “Murtaza Wahab was not the chosen representative of the people as on 15th June, 2023, nor at the time of his Oath, hence, his election and appointment as Mayor Karachi and subsequent exercise of power and authority on behalf of Stale as “Mayor Karachi” is unconstitutional, ultravires with the Basic Scheme constitution and is therefore liable to be suspended, cancelled and to be de-notified ab intio forthwith.”
