Table of Contents
The changes are followed by an election law amendment and the former prime minister’s release from a 37-year-old bribery prosecution by a Pakistani court.
Rapid developments involving Nawaz Sharif portend a significant upheaval in Pakistani politics as the former prime minister is anticipated to return from exile. There are many rumours that Nawaz Sharif would run for prime minister in the elections of 2024. Since November 2019, Sharif has been residing in London after a court permitted him to do so for medical reasons. Nawaz Sharif was removed from the position of Prime Minister of Pakistan by the Pakistan Supreme Court in 2017 due to allegations of corruption.
Nawaz Sharif has reached Dubai:
Nawaz Sharif, a former prime minister of Pakistan, is said to have left London and arrived in Dubai. He is anticipated to fly from Dubai to Saudi Arabia. Maryam Nawaz, the leader of the Pakistan Muslim League (PMLN), has flown from Lahore to Dubai and Saudi Arabia. Along with his son and Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, former Pakistani President and PPP leader Asif Ali Zardari has also departed for Dubai. On June 27, they are anticipated to meet with Nawaz Sharif and the rulers of Dubai.
The Election (Amendment) Bill, 2024:
The Opposition referred to the passage of the measure by Pakistan’s Senate as an effort to open the door for the return and involvement of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in the upcoming elections. The legislation ensures that no member of parliament is disqualified for life.
73-year-old Nawaz Sharif was declared ineligible in 2017 by a five-judge Supreme Court panel. He lost his lifetime eligibility to enter public office in 2018 as a result of a Supreme Court decision.
The Elections (Amendment) Bill 2024, which would have limited the lifetime disqualification of MPs to five years, was approved by the Pakistani National Assembly on June 25. The Senate already approved the legislation on June 16. The Supreme Court declared Sharif, then 73, ineligible for public office for life in 2017. The accountability courts later found Sharif guilty of corruption. Following the Panama Papers court decision in 2018, the three-time former prime minister also lost his right to hold public office for the rest of his life.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is now permitted to publish election dates without first consulting the President because of an amendment to Section 232 (Disqualification on account of Offences) mentioned under the Election Act, 2017. Arif Alvi, the current president, is supported by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), and he is now away from home performing the Hajj. Nawaz was freed on June 24 in a 37-year-old high-profile bribery case involving the distribution of land. One of the major media tycoons in the nation is said to have received a valuable piece of state property in Lahore as payment from Sharif.
Sharif will run for prime minister?
On August 12, the present National Assembly of Pakistan will have served its full five-year term. According to Pakistan’s Constitution, new general elections must be held within 60 days. In October, there will be elections in the nation. As soon as the date of the general elections is announced, the PML-N claims that its party leader will return to Pakistan.
According to party vice president Maryam Nawaz, the ruling Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) will win the forthcoming general elections by a huge margin and become a powerful legislative force.
Days before Maryam’s claim, it was revealed that Nawaz Sharif, the leader of the PML-N and her father, could fly back from London to oversee the party’s election campaign.
