Muhammad Baligh Ur Rehman

Muhammad Baligh Ur Rehman (born 21 December 1970) is a Pakistani politician from Bahawalpur who served as the Governor of Punjab from 2022 to 2024. His father, Muhammad Aqil-ur-Rehman, was a member of the National Assembly from 1997 to 1999.

Rehman was educated at Sadiq Public School in Bahawalpur before graduating as an electrical engineer from the University of Pennsylvania in 1994. He was elected to the National Assembly of Pakistan from NA-185 Bahawalpur on a Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) ticket in 2008 and was re-elected in 2013.

During his second term, Rehman was appointed Minister of State for Federal Education and Professional Training in 2013, later also taking charge of the Ministry of Interior and Narcotics Control. Following the change of prime minister in 2017, he was elevated to Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training, serving until the end of the National Assembly’s term in 2018.

In May 2022, Rehman was appointed Governor of Punjab by President Arif Alvi on the advice of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, a position that also made him Chancellor of Punjab’s public sector universities. He served as governor through a period of significant political turbulence in Punjab before being succeeded by Sardar Saleem Haider Khan in May 2024.