The Balochistan government has removed Provincial Minister for Public Health Engineering Sardar Abdul Rehman Khetran from the provincial cabinet with immediate effect, it was reported on Monday.
According to an official notification issued by the Services and General Administration Department (S&GAD), Governor Sheikh Jaffar Khan Mandokhail approved Khetran’s de-notification on the advice of Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti under Article 132(3) of the Constitution of Pakistan.
The notification, signed by Chief Secretary Shakeel Qadir Khan, confirmed that Khetran had been relieved of his ministerial responsibilities with immediate effect.
The provincial government has not yet named a replacement, while the official order did not state the reason for his removal.
However, government sources said the chief minister had sent the summary seeking Khetran’s removal to the governor two days earlier after differences between the two leaders reportedly intensified over political and administrative matters.
According to the sources, one of the key points of disagreement was the provincial government’s decision to create new districts and divisions.
Khetran had reportedly objected to the formation and naming of the new Koh Suleman Division, comprising West Dera Bugti, Kohlu and Barkhan districts.
He had also opposed the inclusion of parts of his native Barkhan district into the newly created West Dera Bugti district, which was established after the division of Dera Bugti a few months ago.
Khetran is regarded as one of Balochistan’s most influential and controversial political figures.
A tribal chief from Barkhan, he was first elected to the Balochistan Assembly in 1997 and has held several key portfolios, including education, communications, and public health engineering.
Over the years, he has been affiliated with multiple political parties.
After serving with the Pakistan Muslim League (Q), he was elected on the ticket of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) in 2013 and later joined the Balochistan Awami Party to win a seat in 2018.
In the 2024 general elections, he was elected to the provincial assembly on the ticket of the Pakistan Muslim League (N).
Khetran has also faced legal controversies during his political career.
In 2023, he was arrested after allegations surfaced that he had operated a private jail in Barkhan and was linked to the murder of three people.
He was later acquitted by the courts.
Earlier, in 2014, he also faced similar allegations of running a private jail, spending nearly five years in custody before being acquitted in 2018.
