Shehbaz Sharif elected PML-N head

The Punjab chief minister was elected unopposed

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) general council on Monday elected Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif as the new chairperson of PML-N.

The general council's meeting was scheduled for March 6. However, it had to be postponed for a week as Shehbaz had fallen ill.

Shehbaz contested for the seat unopposed.

As the next step, the decision of Shehbaz's election would be sent to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to list him as the party's president.



The change came as the Supreme Court, in February, barred former prime minister Nawaz Sharif from serving as the president of PML-N after he was ousted as the premier over corruption charges.

In its five-page order, read by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, the court declares that any person who is disqualified under the Article 62 or 63 of the Constitution is barred from holding the position of “Party Head” by whatever name called.

Justice Ijaz ul Ahsan said a party head has a direct connection with members of the Parliament and if a disqualified person heads a party, then that disqualified person can also control the lawmakers.

"If the party head is polluted then whole scheme is polluted," he noted.

The apex court’s decision to disqualify Nawaz Sharif as the PML-N chief had invited criticism from the ruling party.

Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb had termed the decision biased, saying the judiciary is only targeting one person -- Nawaz Sharif.