Former Punjab chief minister Manzoor Wattoo passes away

Former Punjab chief minister and former speaker of the Punjab Assembly Manzoor Wattoo passed away on Tuesday, his family confirmed.

Born on August 14, 1939, Wattoo began his political career in 1983 after being elected chairman of the Okara District Council. He entered the Punjab Assembly in 1985 and was elected speaker of the house, marking the start of a long parliamentary career.

He returned to the Punjab Assembly in 1988 as an independent lawmaker and later joined Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League, which was part of the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad. He was once again elected speaker of the Punjab Assembly.

In the 1993 general elections, Wattoo won seats in both the National Assembly and the Punjab Assembly on the IJI ticket but chose to serve in the provincial legislature. He was elected speaker for a third consecutive term.

Later in 1993, he played a key role in toppling the Pakistan Muslim League–Nawaz government of Ghulam Haider Wyne through a no-confidence motion. With the backing of the Pakistan Peoples Party, Wattoo became Punjab’s chief minister, despite having the support of a relatively small group of lawmakers.

His alliance with the PPP ended in 1995, after which Benazir Bhutto appointed Arif Nakai as Punjab’s chief minister. The same year, Wattoo founded Pakistan Muslim League-Jinnah following differences with his cousin Hamid Nasir Chattha over leadership of PML-Junejo.

Wattoo was elected to the National Assembly in 1996 under the PML-Jinnah banner. He later faced corruption cases, leading to a conviction and brief imprisonment. After being cleared of the charges, he joined Pakistan Muslim League–Quaid during the rule of General Pervez Musharraf and merged his faction into PML-Q.

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In the 2008 general elections, Wattoo contested as an independent and won two National Assembly seats from Okara. He later rejoined the PPP, retaining one seat, while his son Khurram Jehangir won the second in a by-election on a PPP ticket.

In October 2012, Wattoo was appointed president of the PPP in central Punjab. He also served as federal minister for Kashmir affairs during the PPP-led government from 2008 to 2013.

Manzoor Wattoo was regarded as one of Punjab’s most seasoned politicians, known for his shifting alliances and influential role in provincial politics spanning several decades.