Fayaz-ul-Hasan Chohan is a Pakistani politician who served in the Punjab Provincial Assembly from August 2018 to January 2023. He was also the Chief Minister of Punjab’s Official Spokesperson and the President of the Directorate General Public Relations. He formerly served as Punjab’s Provincial Minister for Information, Culture, Colonies, and Prisons from August 27, 2018, to March 30, 2020.
Early Life and Education
He was born in Lahore on May 21, 1970, into a Chohan family of the Gujar tribe.
He holds a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of Punjab, Lahore, and is a software engineer by profession.
Political Career
Jamaat-e-Islami Affiliation (2002-2007)
Associated with the Jamaat-e-Islami, Fayaz-ul-Hasan Chohan was elected to the Punjab Provincial Assembly in 2002 as a Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) candidate from PP-14 (Rawalpindi-XIV). He received 13,738 votes and defeated Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) candidate Rashid Naseem Abbasi. From 12 August 2003 until the assembly’s dissolution in 2007, he served as Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Social Welfare, Women Development, and Bait-ul-Maal, as well as a member of the Standing Committee on Revenue, Relief, and Consolidation.
Pakistan Muslim League (Q) Candidacy (2008)
He ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the Punjab Provincial Assembly as a candidate of the Pakistan Muslim League (Q) (PML-Q) from PP-14 (Rawalpindi-XIV) in the 2008 Punjab provincial election. He garnered 4,166 votes and was defeated by Hanif Abbasi for the seat.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Candidacy (2018)
In the 2018 Punjab provincial election, he was re-elected to the Punjab Provincial Assembly as a candidate of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) from PP-17 Rawalpindi-XII. He defeated Raja Abdul Hanif with 40,919 votes
Administrative Roles and Transitions
In August 2018, Fayyaz ul Hassan Chohan became Punjab’s Minister for Information and Culture but resigned in March 2019 amid controversy. He returned in July 2019 as Minister for Colonies and had a fluctuating role in information and culture until 2020. Later, he served as Punjab’s Minister for Prisons in November 2020.
Alongside his ministerial roles, Chohan served as the Official Spokesperson to Punjab’s Chief Minister and President of the Directorate General Public Relations.
Departure from PTI
On May 23, 2023, Fayyaz ul Hassan Chohan decided to leave the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.
Controversies
Shortly after becoming Punjab’s Provincial Minister for Information and Culture in August 2018, he sparked outrage by using foul language at TV channel staff during an interview on August 30, 2018. The same day, he was caught on video making “vulgar and derogatory misogynistic remarks” about female Lollywood actors. Both incidents earned him severe criticism.
Fayyaz resigned from the Punjab provincial cabinet in March 2019 following some of his remarks in the wake of the India-Pakistan turmoil in 2019. To highlight how lofty his motherland Pakistan is in comparison to India, he degraded Indians with crude and nasty remarks. This was particularly insulting to his country’s Hindu people. Pakistan Punjab Province Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar and Prime Minister Imran Khan both called for clarity. Chohan apologised for his insulting words and claimed that they were directed against the Indian armed forces and administration, not any Hindu group. Despite his apology, Chohan was forced to resign from the ministry.