Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and the Election Commissioner of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Shah Khawar on Wednesday assumed the powers of interim chairman of the cricket board.

According to the notification from the Inter-Provincial Coordination (IPC) Ministry dated January 23, Shah Khawar is vested with the powers of Chairman PCB under Article 7(2) of the PCB Constitution.

“I would like to thank the Patron of the PCB, Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, for reposing trust in me. My primary responsibility will be to hold the election of Chairman PCB in a free and transparent manner at the earliest,” Shah Khawar said in a statement.

The development comes a day after the IPC ministry notified the appointment of interim Chief Minister Punjab Mohsin Naqvi as a member of the PCB’s governing body, amid reports that the latter would eventually be elected as PCB chairman.

The seat fell vacant after Zaka Ashraf, the former PCB management committee chairman tendered his resignation to PM Kakar two weeks before the scheduled conclusion of the IMC’s tenure and has been duly accepted by the Prime Minister.