The Pakistan Supreme Court on Friday disqualified Nawaz Sharif as Prime Minister over corruption charges in the Panama Papers case. "He is no more eligible to be an honest member of the parliament and he ceases to be holding the office of prime minister," Judge Ejaz Afzal Khan said in court.
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Sharif, who was in his third stint as Prime Minister has had to demit office twice earlier, in the third year of his tenure. Even as the country’s Attorney General announced that Sharif has been “disqualified for life,” here are the options he now has.
He Can Appeal the Verdict
A five-judge bench of the country’s Supreme Court voted 5-0 to disqualify Sharif as the Prime Minister. Sharif now has the option of challenging the verdict before higher benches in the court, reported News18.
His Younger Brother Can Step In
In the interim, the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) will have to appoint a new prime minister to carry out its full term. Sharif is likely to rope in his younger brother and Chief Minister of Punjab province Shehbaz Sharif.
Since Shehbaz is not a member of the National Assembly – the lower house of the Parliament – he cannot succeed immediately and would have to contest elections. The interim head of executive will remain PM until Shehbaz is formally elected.
He Accepts the Verdict and Resigns From Active Politics
Pakistan’s Attorney General announced amid cries of celebration from the Opposition that Sharif had been “disqualified for life”. This, in effect, would mean that Sharif’s career in active politics has come to an end.
If his move of challenging the verdict does not work in his favour, Sharif has few options left but to resign from active politics, though he is still likely to steer his PML(N) from the backseat.
The Supreme Court dismissed Sharif after an investigative panel alleged his family could not account for its vast wealth. Domestic media reported a criminal investigation would also be launched against the premier and his family.
The assets in question surfaced when the 2016 Panama Papers leak revealed that they were managed through offshore companies owned by Sharif's children. The assets include four expensive flats in London.
(With inputs from Reuters.)
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