Nazim

Not to be confused with Nazism.

This article is about the Pakistani position in local government. For other uses, see Nazim (disambiguation).

Nazim is the title in Urdu of the chief elected official of a local government in Pakistan.

Description

A nazim, from the Arabic word for "organizer" or "convenor" (similar to mayor), is the coordinator of cities and towns in Pakistan. Nazim is the title in Urdu of the chief elected official of a local government in Pakistan, such as a district, tehsil, union council, or village council.^[1][2] The "chief nazim," or district nazim, is elected by the nazims of Union Councils, Union Councillors, and Tehsil Nazims, who themselves are elected directly by the votes of the electorate, the district nazim can also be removed by councillors if they feel any wrongdoing has taken place or if they band together and wish to remove the nazim.^[3]

Deputy

A Naib Nazim, or deputy Nazim, is an elected deputy government official.^[4] The word "Naib" means assistant or deputy whilst Nazim is similar to a mayor, hence Naib Nazim is similar in function to a deputy mayor. ^[5]

History

Pakistan originally had a system inherited from the time of British rule, in which a Mayor was the head of a district. Under the Local Government Act, however, the role of the nazim became distinct from that of a Mayor, with more power. The nazim system was introduced after the commissionerate system, imposed during British rule, was lifted by the government of Pakistan. Now there is no commissioner for any of the divisions, deputy commissioner for the districts, or assistant commissioners, since the Local Government act was imposed in the country in 2001. The one exception is Islamabad, the federal capital, where the commissionerate system remains in effect.^{[citation needed]}

In 2009, the new government restored the commissionerate system in the divisions but the nazims also remain in power.^{[citation needed]}

See also

• Subdivisions of Pakistan