The combined opposition in the Pakistan National Assembly has nominated Shehbaz Sharif as the leader of the house, paving the way for him to become the Prime Minister of the country replacing Imran Khan who was ousted from the post in a midnight no-confidence vote.
According to a statement issued by the National Assembly, the house will convene on Monday on April 11 at 2 pm to elect the new Prime Minister.
Shebaz Sharif, the brother of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, is likely to be elected “unopposed” as there is no other contender for the post.
He will meeting Pakistan President Arif Alvi to stake his claim after which he will have to prove his majority on the floor of the assembly.
Born on September 23, 1951 to a Punjabi-speaking Kashmiri family, Shehbaz Sharif is the younger brother of Nawaz Sharif.
His father Muhammad Sharif was born in Jati Umra in Amritsar district but the family was originally from Anantnag in Kashmir and had settled in Punjab.The family migrated to Lahore after the partition.
Shebaz Sharif is an experienced politician having served as the Chief Minister of Punjab three times – 1997, 2008, and 2013. He had to leave Pakistan and live in exile in Saudi Arabia for eight years after the 1999 coup led by General Parvez Musharraf.
Shehbaz became the Chief Minister of Punjab after Nawaz Sharif’s PML-N party won the 2008 elections. Shehbaz continued as CM in the second term as well until 2018 when his party faced a defeat after which he was nominated as the leader of the opposition.
In 2019, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) seized several properties of Shehbaz and his son Hamza as a case of money laundering was lodged against them. Shehbaz was arrested and jailed from September 2020 till April 2021 when he was finally given bail by the Lahore High Court.
Shehbaz Sharif was elected unopposed as the President of PML-N in February 2018 after his brother Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was disqualified from holding key positions in the wake of the “Panama Papers” disclosures.
According to Pakistan watchers, Shebaz Sharif’s first “job” will be to get his brother back from London and it is expected the next election will be fought under his leadership.
Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Imran Khan too has called his supporters to get ready for the elections.
Also Read : At the stroke of midnight, Pak PM Imran Khan loses trust vote in a high voltage drama
