According to a story by Dawn, in which they quoted Rashid's interview to a TV channel, the minister said "the appointment [of ISI chief] will take place before next Friday.”

However, he said he could not make public the reasons for the delay in appointment as only Prime Minister Imran Khan could apprise people on this matter.

The issue of the notification of the appointment of a new DG ISI has gripped the nation since the ISPR issued a press release on Oct 6 naming Lt Gen Nadeem Aslam as the new spy chief. Prime Minister Khan, however, has not signed off on the notification raising to speculations of tension in civil military relations.

Rasheed said there was no tension whatsoever.

However, various members of Khan's cabinet have tried to dispel such notions.

Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry was quoted in Dawn as saying the appointment of new ISI chief was a “routine matter”, once both civil and military leadership reached consensus on the issue.

Since Maryam Nawaz accused Khan of running the government on "jadoo tona" (magic spells) while talking to the press in Islamabad next week, ministers have rubbished such claims.

When asked if there was any spiritual reason behind the delay, Chaudhry said: “It is totally absurd that the issue is being delayed intentionally due to divine intervention. It is illogical that someone is casting a spell.”