Who's Shehbaz Sharif? Key facts about his life, political career
Shehbaz Sharif has been officially nominated as the joint prime ministerial candidate of the Opposition parties in Pakistan ahead of Monday's election to elect a new premier. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief and the current Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly is poised to become Pakistan's next prime minister. Here are some key facts regarding his life and political career.
- Sharif—who spearheaded the combined Opposition's bid against Imran Khan—is the key person responsible for Khan's ouster as Pakistan's prime minister early on Sunday.
- To recall, Khan lost the much-delayed no-confidence vote as there were 174 votes in favor of the motion—which was tabled by Sharif—in the 342-member National Assembly.
- The cricketer-turned-politician is the first Pakistani PM to be removed through a no-trust vote.
Sharif was born on September 23, 1951, reportedly in a Punjabi-speaking Kashmiri family in Lahore. His father, Muhammad Sharif, was born in Amritsar's Jati Umra (India), but his family originally hailed from Kashmir's Anantnag and later moved to Amritsar. Muhammad was married to Shamim Akhtar and they had three children: Nawaz, Shehbaz, and Abbas. The family migrated to Lahore after the Partition of India.
An alumnus of Government College University, Lahore, Sharif worked at his family-run Ittefaq Group before joining politics. His political career began in 1988 when he was elected to the Provincial Assembly of Punjab. Later in 1990—when his brother Nawaz became the prime minister—Sharif was elected to the National Assembly. In 1997, he was appointed Punjab's Chief Minister during his brother's second stint as PM.
In 1999, Sharif and Nawaz were deposed in a military coup, following which their family was forcibly exiled to Saudi Arabia. They came back to Pakistan in 2007 and subsequently returned to their previous posts. When Nawaz was ousted as PM in 2017, Sharif was eventually expected to succeed him. However, he lost the 2018 General Election and became the LoP in National Assembly.
Notably, Nawaz was found guilty in the Panama Papers case in 2017 and Sharif became PML-N's chief unopposed in 2018. But Sharif too—like his brother—faces corruption accusations and was arrested in 2020 on charges of laundering. However, the Opposition's unity against Khan and the military's alleged tacit support to ouster Khan likely worked in Sharif's favor to become the frontrunner for the top post.
Observers say, unlike his elder brother Nawaz, Sharif has cordial relations with Pakistan's military that has significant control over the foreign and defense policy of the country. Furthermore, Sharif—known to be a skilled administrator—has worked extensively with China on various Beijing-funded programs in Pakistan and shares good relations with it. Interestingly, the Sharif brothers have also had good relations with India.
