Islamabad: Former federal minister Zahid Hamid staged a comeback to the cabinet of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday, taking the oath as minister for climate change.
President Mamnoon Hussain administered the oath to him at a ceremony at the presidency.
Hamid had resigned last year after a special court for the treason trial of Pervez Musharraf named him as one of the abettors of the former military ruler in the imposition of emergency in the country in 2007. At that time he was the law minister in Musharraf’s regime.
The special court had directed the government to include Hamid as one of the co-accused alongside former prime minister Shaukat Aziz and ex-chief justice of Pakistan Abdul Hameed Dogar.
Earlier this month, the Islamabad High Court in a verdict on petitions filed by the three set aside that order of the special court.
Born on October 24, 1947 in Lahore, Hamid obtained MA degree from Cambridge University and LLB degree from Punjab University in Pakistan.
Following Musharraf’s military takeover in 1999, Hamid defected to the breakaway faction of the Pakistan Muslim League — Nawaz (PML-N) called the Pakistan Muslim League — Quaid (PML-Q) and was elected to the National Assembly from Sialkot in the 2002 general election.
Hamid had held the portfolio of law minister in the Musharraf’s government and was said to be his close aide.
Before the 2008 elections that led to ouster of Musharraf from power, Hamid returned to the fold of PML-N.
