Nawaz Sharif has been re-elected unopposed as the President of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party, six years after resigning due to a Supreme Court ruling in the Panama Papers case. The election took place during the party’s general council meeting on Tuesday.
The 74-year-old veteran politician, who returned to Pakistan last October after a four-year self-imposed exile in the UK, was the sole nominee for the party president position. PML-N election commissioner Rana Sanaullah announced Sharif’s unopposed election and the general council members endorsed his nomination with a standing ovation and slogans in his favor.
ثاقب نثار نے مجھے زندگی بھر کیلیے مسلم لیگ ن کی صدارت سے ہٹا دیا تھا عوام مجھے واپس لے کر آئے ہیں ثاقب نثار کا فیصلہ ردی کی ٹوکری میں چلا گیا ہے اور اللہ نے مجھے سرخرو کیا ہے
صدر مسلم لیگ (ن) محمد نوازشریف
#ہم_28_مئی_والے_ہیں pic.twitter.com/T9xA78Pols
— PMLN (@pmln_org) May 28, 2024
During the meeting, a resolution was passed demanding action against those responsible for toppling Nawaz’s government in 2017, specifically targeting army generals and judges. The council also expressed solidarity with the people of Palestine and Kashmir.
Nawaz Sharif, the only politician to have served as Pakistan’s prime minister three times, succeeds his younger brother, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, as party president.
Nawaz lost his position as party leader in 2018 after the Supreme Court, led by then-Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, ruled that individuals disqualified under Articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution could not head a political party. This decision followed his lifetime disqualification in the Panama Papers-related corruption case.
In anticipation of the general council meeting, the party shared a video stating, “The lion is returning to take his rightful place at the top.” Following his re-election, the party posted on X, “They keep removing Quaid Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, and the public keeps bringing him back. You can’t remove Mian sb from the hearts of the masses.”
Mian sb resides in every heart! People’s choice is still QUAID NAWAZ SHARIF. pic.twitter.com/GoPS9GrKOV
— PMLN (@pmln_org) May 28, 2024
The general council meeting was initially scheduled for May 11 but was postponed to align with the 26th anniversary of Pakistan’s nuclear tests conducted on May 28, 1998, during Nawaz’s tenure as prime minister.
After returning from London in October, Nawaz was acquitted in two major corruption cases, Avenfield and Al-Azizia, by the Islamabad High Court. He had been serving a seven-year sentence in the Al-Azizia Mills corruption case before being allowed to leave for the UK for medical treatment.
His re-election was facilitated by the Supreme Court’s January decision to overturn the lifetime disqualification for lawmakers under Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution. Nawaz has been keeping a low profile since his party failed to secure a majority in the February 8 general elections, though he has recently been seen leading Punjab government meetings and issuing directives to officials.
Maryam Nawaz, Nawaz’s daughter, is the Chief Minister of Punjab province. Earlier this month, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif resigned as PML-N president, citing the “unjust” disqualification of Nawaz and declaring it was time for his elder brother to “resume his rightful place as the president of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party.”
The February 8 general elections resulted in a fractured mandate, with PML-N unable to secure a clear majority. The party formed a federal government in coalition with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) led by Bilawal Zardari Bhutto and other smaller parties, with Nawaz relinquishing the prime minister position to Shehbaz.
