The reigning Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) administration was voted out after losing a no-confidence motion, and PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif, who is presently the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly, is expected to become the new Prime Minister.
With 174 votes in favour of the no-confidence resolution, Imran Khan’s PTI lost its majority in the House of Commons.
During a joint press conference of the opposition parties on March 30, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari announced Sharif’s candidacy as the opposition’s pick for Prime Minister. He’ll most likely be elected as the new Prime Minister during the same National Assembly session that saw Imran Khan deposed from office after the country’s Supreme Court overturned the Deputy Speaker of the House’s rejection of the Opposition’s no-confidence motion.
After striking aside the Deputy Speaker Qasim Khan Suri’s April 3 verdict against the no-confidence motion on “Constitutional grounds,” Pakistan’s Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling on Thursday ordering the National Assembly to convene “not later than 10:30 AM on Saturday.”
The Court declared the Deputy Speaker’s decision “contrary to the Constitution and the law, and of no legal effect,” and set aside all subsequent actions, including the dissolution of the National Assembly, as well as restoring Prime Minister Imran Khan and all Federal Ministers to their positions as of April 3.
The court also set the Saturday session with the restrictions that it cannot be prorogued until the motion is voted on, and that if Imran Khan loses the no-confidence vote, the next Prime Minister must be elected during the same session.
Here’s an Overlook Into Sharif’s Life
Shehbaz Sharif is the younger brother of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who served three terms and was born into an industrialist family in Lahore in 1950. Shehbaz Sharif has served three terms as the Chief Minister of Pakistan’s key Punjab state.
Shehbaz Sharif had staked a claim for the Prime Minister’s chair in August 2018, after establishing a reputation as an administrator. However, the last-minute decision by the Bilawal Bhutto-led PPP to abstain from the PM vote paved the door for Imran Khan of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf to be elected Prime Minister. Shehbaz Sharif became the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly after that.
Shehbaz Sharif, a graduate of Lahore’s Government College University, began his career in his family’s steel industry before becoming president of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industries in 1985.
With the Sharif family ready to return to power in Pakistan amid rapidly deteriorating economic conditions and political instability, it will be interesting to observe whether Shehbaz Sharif injects new life into the system, or if the scandal-plagued dynasty sticks to its old ways.
Sharif’s controversies
The younger Sharif has been hounded by the same corruption allegations and scandal as his elder brother.
Shehbaz was charged in 2003, while still in exile, with instructing the police to assassinate five religious students suspected of being involved in terrorist acts in 1998. He denied the charges and claimed they were made for political reasons.
The younger Sharif, on the other hand, benefits from the Opposition’s unity against Imran Khan’s ‘vindictive politics,’ as well as the military establishment’s tacit support, which appears to be eager to depose Imran Khan, especially after his recent vitriolic remarks against the US, including raising the foreign conspiracy charge.
The Sharif brothers returned to Pakistan in 2007, but Shehbaz was forbidden from standing for office the following year because of the murder accusations. In 2008, he was found not guilty.
In December 2019, Shehbaz was once again embroiled in controversy when the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) seized 23 of his properties, charging him and his son, Hamza Sharif, of money laundering. He was arrested on suspicion of amassing assets worth Rs 7,328 million with the help of his co-accused family members.
The Lahore High Court granted him bail in the money-laundering case in April of last year.
Shehbaz The Modest Admistrator
Shehbaz has been called an effective administrator, and according to a Bloomberg story, he barely sleeps four hours per night and spends the rest of his time working.
According to the story, the younger Sharif could also bulldoze his way through Pakistan’s cumbersome bureaucracy and accomplish infrastructure projects in record time.
He was recognised as Punjab’s chief minister for his passion for infrastructure development, and he invested substantially in the construction of transportation systems, including mega projects like inter-city rapid transit systems, highways, and rural road development. The Orange Line, the first of the Lahore Metro, was started during his reign but has yet to be completed.
He also emphasised the importance of education in the province. According to Alif Ailaan, a non-profit, Punjab’s education system beat all other provinces under his reign.
Moreover, during Sharif’s second term, the province’s women’s issues were given special attention, including the establishment of the Punjab Commission on Status of Women (PCSW).
The Challenges That Shehbaz As A New Pm Would Face
Another plus for Shehbaz is that he is perceived to have a more cordial relationship with the military than his brother.
Shehbaz also has strong international ties, having accompanied the elder Sharif on several travels abroad, including to China. He also gets along well with Recep Ergdogan, the Turkish president.
The more pressing problem in foreign affairs remains Pakistan’s immediate neighbours. The Sharifs have had good relations with India and even the country’s current Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa has sounded conciliatory while talking about ties with New Delhi. He had said on April 2 that he wants talks with India and is ready to “move forward” over Kashmir. “Pakistan continues to believe in using dialogue and diplomacy to resolve all outstanding issues including the Kashmir dispute and is ready to move forward on this front if India agrees to do so,” Bajwa had said.
Shehbaz will also have to cope with China, who is known as the “iron brother.” The Sharif brothers were essential in establishing the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor as part of Beijing’s Belt and Road drive to expand infrastructure around the world, and they appeared to get along well with Chinese officials. However, under Imran’s leadership, the plan stagnated as some crucial components, including as a new railway, were blocked.
The most difficult aspect of Shehbaz’s foreign relations would be Afghanistan, where the Taliban took control last year. The Taliban’s victory last year — when they took power as soon as US President Joe Biden withdrew American troops from Afghanistan — has emboldened Pakistan’s own jihadists, who have carried out several terrorist attacks, the most recent of which occurred a week ago in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, killing six security personnel.
India’s Expectation From Shehbaz
During Imran Khan’s term, India’s relations with Pakistan deteriorated because he consistently echoed Pakistan’s position on Kashmir and was hawkish toward India. Shehbaz has tackled the Kashmir problem as well, but his tone is kinder to India and minorities.
During Holi he wished Hindus living in Pakistan for the festival and tweeted, “our diversity is our greatest strength. Pakistan belongs to all its citizens, irrespective of their caste, creed and colour. May the day be source of peace and happiness for all.”
Shehbaz is a frequent tweeter who condemns the deaths of Pakistani minorities (Hindus and Christians). Such situations reveal a politician who is more objective. He even expressed his sorrow over the death of famous singer Lata Mangeshkar.
However, it is unclear whether this mood will result in a shift in Pakistan’s stance toward India.
Nonetheless, It would be interesting to see how Sharif Pakistan would perform After Imran Khan’s Naya Pakistan had steep fall in the end.
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