- Pakistan’s parliament has elected Shehbaz Sharif as the country’s new prime minister.
- The election came after Prime Minister Imran Khan was removed from office after losing a no-confidence vote.
- Ahead of Monday’s vote, MPs from Khan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party in Pakistan resigned en masse and boycotted Sharif’s election.
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These were the updates on April 11th:
6 hours ago (14:29 GMT)
PM swears reconciliation and stimulates the economy
Sharif said his government will focus on reconciliation in a society polarized by former leader Imran Khan’s policies and revitalizing a struggling economy.
“The economic challenges are enormous and we must find a way out of these problems. We will have to shed sweat and blood to revive the economy,” he said.
6 hours ago (14:17 GMT)
Good relations with India essential: Sharif
The prime minister spoke of improving relations with India but said a lasting peace “cannot be possible without a Kashmir solution”.
India and Pakistan have fought three wars over the disputed Himalayan region.
Shehbaz Sharif sits in a vehicle as he arrives at Parliament House in Islamabad, Pakistan, April 11, 2022 [Akhtar Soomro/Reuters]
6 hours ago (14:00 GMT)
Sharif promises to speed up Chinese-funded projects
Sharif said his government will speed up Beijing-backed projects in Pakistan.
The projects are being implemented as part of the $60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) – part of Beijing’s “Belt and Road” initiative.
7 hours ago (12:52 GMT)
Pakistan heading for historic budget, trade deficits: Sharif
The newly elected prime minister said the country was on track to record the largest budget deficit in its history, as well as historic trade and current account deficits.
In his first speech as prime minister, Sharif said his new government faces a major challenge in getting the economy back on track after Khan’s mismanagement.
“The situation is very bad but I am sure that with the blessing of Allah and with hard work we will change it,” he added.
8 hours ago (12:04 GMT)
Opposition leader Sharif elected new prime minister
Pakistan’s parliament has elected Shebaz Sharif as the country’s new prime minister after a 174 vote in the 342-seat assembly.
“Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has been elected Prime Minister,” Acting Spokesman Sardar Ayaz Sadiq said.
The newly elected minister will now form a new government that can remain in office until August 2023, when general elections are due.
9 hours ago (11:09 GMT)
PTI announces resignation from the National Assembly
Former Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said the PTI had decided to withdraw from the National Assembly.
“This House will elect a new Prime Minister, but everyone knows who he is [Sharif] is imposed and does not have the mandate of the people,” Qureshi said. “We reject this procedure and also announce it [a] Boycott the prime ministerial election.”
10 hours ago (10:19 GMT)
The parliamentary session to elect the Prime Minister begins
A session of Pakistan’s parliament to elect a new prime minister has begun, capping a tumultuous week of political drama that narrowly averted the ousting of Prime Minister Imran Khan and a constitutional crisis after intervention by the country’s top court.
The leading contender is Shehbaz Sharif, opposition lawmaker and brother of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
10 hours ago (09:57 GMT)
PTI lawmaker tweets resignation
Pakistan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and former Minister of Maritime Affairs Ali Haider Zaidi has announced his resignation from the National Assembly.
Zaidi shared a picture of his resignation letter on Twitter and said the document had been presented to party leader Imran Khan.
“By no means should we legitimize this foreign-funded regime change in Pakistan. The struggle for Pakistan’s sovereignty will now be decided by the people on the street, not by these looters,” Zaidi wrote on Twitter.
Submitted my resignation from NA to the chairman @ImranKhanPTI
In no way should we legitimize this foreign-funded regime change in Pakistan.
The struggle for Pakistan’s sovereignty will now be decided on the streets by the people, not by these looters. #امپورٹڈ_گورنمنٹ_نامنظور pic.twitter.com/wdhtqauOje— Ali Haider Zaidi (@AliHZaidiPTI) April 11, 2022
11 hours ago (09:30 GMT)
Khan’s PTI Boycotts Prime Minister Election?
According to local media reports, there is speculation that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), former Prime Minister Khan’s party, has decided to boycott the election of a new prime minister in parliament.
Khan held a meeting of his party’s MPs in parliament but left the premises after the meeting, Geo TV reported, fueling the speculation.
11 hours ago (09:17 GMT)
Resignation of PTI MPs: report
The PTI parliamentary party has decided to withdraw en masse from the National Assembly, Geo TV reported, citing sources in Imran Khan’s party.
Khan chaired the meeting and told colleagues he would be the first to tender his resignation as a member of the House of Representatives, the report said.
11 hours ago (08:56 GMT)
Stocks rise amid signs of political stability
The Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 index is up more than 1,500 points, with analysts attributing the rally to a possible end to weeks of political instability, the Dawn newspaper reported.
The index opened at 44,444.58 and was up 1541.57 points, or 3.47 percent, by 12:30 p.m. (07:30 GMT), the report said.
“The market has responded positively to political stability,” financial analyst Tahir Abbas told Al Jazeera.
Alhamdulila 🇵🇰
Stock market increased by 1444 points ⬆️ 🇵🇰
Dollars from 189 to 182 ⬇️ 🇵🇰#وزیرِاعظم_شہبازشریف
— Maryam Nawaz Sharif (@MaryamNSharif) April 11, 2022
11 hours ago (08:49 GMT)
‘Cannot be part of the congregation where…’
Former Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry, a member of Khan’s PTI party, says the party’s MPs will resign if they lose the prime minister’s election in parliament.
“We cannot be part of the assembly where Shehbaz Sharif is the prime minister,” Chaudhry told reporters outside the parliament building.
12 hours ago (08:10 GMT)
Who is Shehbaz Sharif?
Shehbaz Sharif, leader of the centrist Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and former prime minister of Pakistan’s most populous province of Punjab, appears likely to be elected ahead of Khan-loyalist Shah Mahmood Qureshi, the former foreign minister.
Sharif, 70, is the younger brother of three-time Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was banned from holding public office by the Supreme Court in 2017 and then went abroad for medical treatment after serving just months of a 10-year sentence on corruption charges .
Read more here.
12 hours ago (08:05 GMT)
Parliament meets to elect new Prime Minister
The lower house of parliament is scheduled to meet at 14:00 (09:00 GMT) to choose the new prime minister.
No elected prime minister has served a full term in Pakistan since it gained independence from colonial Britain in 1947.
12 hours ago (07:59 GMT)
Photos: Anger in the streets as Khan is sacked
Tens of thousands of supporters of ousted Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan have demonstrated in cities across the country and have said they want him back in power.
Khan, 69, was sacked in the early hours of Sunday after losing a no-confidence vote, paving the way for him to be replaced by an opposition alliance politician.
See photos here.
Khan’s supporters demonstrate in Peshawar [Fayaz Aziz/Reuters]