Shahbaz to be new PM

ISLAMABAD: Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif will replace Nawaz Sharif as the prime minister of the country and Hamza Sharif will replace his father as Punjab chief minister.

An interim prime minister will be brought in for 45 days to facilitate Shahbaz Sharif’s election as Member of the National Assembly from NA-120, Lahore, that has fallen vacant due to the verdict of the Supreme Court.

This decision was taken here at the PM House on Friday afternoon in a high echelon meeting chaired by deposed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The Parliamentary Committee meeting of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) in the National Assembly has been convened to meet today (Saturday) in the Punjab House, Islamabad, to formally approve the decisions.

Nawaz Sharif, who was de-notified as member of the National Assembly in the afternoon, resigned from the post of the prime minister before its issuance immediately after the pronouncement of the judgment of the Supreme Court in the PanamaLeaks case.

Highly-placed sources told The News that Nawaz Sharif, who was profusely greeted in the consultative meeting that continued for four hours after the verdict, proposed the name of Shahbaz Sharif for the office unanimously approved. National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq is likely to become interim prime minister, while former Federal Minister for Petroleum Shahid Khaqan Abbasi is also being considered to become interim premier and final decision would be taken in the Parliamentary Party’s meeting, the sources said.

The consultative meeting was attended by JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Shahabaz Sharif, Ayaz Sadiq, Punjab Governor Malik Rafiq Rajwana, Sindh Governor Muhammad Zubair Umar, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB)Chief Minister Hafiz Hafeez ur Rehman, Leader of the House in Senate Raja Muhammad Zafarul Haq, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, President PML (Z) Muhammad Ejaz ul Haq, Hamza Shahbaz, Maryam Nawaz Sharif, Senator Pervaiz Rashid and former Special Assistant to the PM Syed Tariq Fatemi.

The PML-N said in a statement that Nawaz Sharif has “stepped down” despite having “serious reservations” about the judicial process. The federal cabinet also stands dissolved.

Nawaz Sharif has summoned former federal minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif from Washington who has gone there to take part in a high-level meeting regarding dams being constructed by India in the Indian Held Kashmir (IHK) contrary to the Indus Basin Treaty.

Pakistan had complained the World Bank about the construction of Kishanganga and Rattle dams by India in the IHK. Khawaja Asif is returning today (Saturday) and will have meeting with the party leadership.

Nawaz Sharif has also convened another consultative huddle today (Saturday) at 11am at the PM House for further discussion before the Parliamentary Party’s meeting. The consultative meeting would fine tune the strategy to deal with the upcoming developments, the sources said. The decision to have new president of the PML-N would also be made in today’s meeting, the sources said.

Meanwhile, the PML-N will also study another proposal today to have a prime minister that should continue till the holding of the general elections without disturbing set-up in Punjab where Shahbaz Sharif has been delivering in impressive manner, the sources hinted. It would be interesting to watch that the country is without any government since Friday noon as all the federal ministers, state ministers, advisers and special assistants stand ceased to exist.