Skip to main content

Nawaz Sharif To Contest Polls From Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Says Son-In-Law

Pakistan's former prime minister Nawaz Sharif would contest elections from the Mansehra region of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, his son-in-law Captain (retd.) Muhammad Safdar said on Wednesday.

Mr Safdar, who hails from Mansehra and is married to Sharif's daughter Maryam Nawaz, told the media that the 73-year-old three-time former premier would submit his nomination papers for the National Assembly seat "NA 15 Mansehra-cum-Torghar constituency" by Thursday (December 21).

Mansehra is part of the Hazara division which is considered a stronghold of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). Mr Sharif is also expected to contest from Lahore in addition to Mansehra.

Mr Sharif, the only Pakistani politician who became the prime minister of the coup-prone country for a record three times, returned to Pakistan in October after a four-year self-imposed exile to lead his party in the general elections.

Mr Sharif, acquitted in the Avenfield and Al Azizia cases by the Islamabad High Court, eyes a record fourth term as premier in the next elections.

However, Mr Sharif faces a big hurdle as he remains disqualified from holding public office by the Supreme Court in the Panama Papers case, and in a later judgment interpreting a provision of the Constitution that involves honesty and trustworthiness - the top court ruled that the disqualification is for life.

Earlier this year amendments were made to the Elections Act, 2017 by the government led by Mr Sharif's younger brother and PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif, limiting the disqualification of lawmakers to five years with a retrospective effect.

The Supreme Court has decided to form a larger bench to determine once and for all whether aspirants disqualified can contest polls in light of the amendments in the Elections Act, 2017.

The case is expected to be decided before elections scheduled to be held on February 8.

Earlier, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-insaf announced that its incarcerated founder leader Imran Khan would contest the general elections from at least three seats.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)



from NDTV News-World-news https://ift.tt/Gc6Tzua

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Sri Lanka Must Achieve Debt Restructuring By September: IMF

The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday reaffirmed that Sri Lanka must achieve its debt restructuring process by September, which is also the time for the global lender's formal review of the bailout facility it extended to the cash-strapped nation. On March 20, IMF extended a nearly $3 billion bailout facility to debt-ridden Sri Lanka that would help stabilise the country's economy after it was jolted by a devastating economic crisis last year. In a statement issued on Tuesday at the end of a nearly two weeks staff visit to Colombo to assess the progress made by Sri Lanka since the agreement was reached, the IMF said the two sides had discussed the developments on debt restructuring. "Sri Lanka must achieve debt restructuring by its first review due in September. We also discussed progress on debt restructuring, noting the ongoing discussions with both foreign and domestic creditors," the statement read. Sri Lanka is still struggling to normalise its crisis-hi...

Biden Warns "All Out War" Possible In Middle East

US President Joe Biden warned Wednesday of the possibility of an "all-out war" in the Middle East but said he was hopeful a settlement was still achievable for the conflict-torn region. Biden's comments as he appeared on ABC chat show "The View" came as Israel put troops on alert for possible entry into Lebanon and the war in Gaza grinds on. "An all-out war is possible," Biden said when asked about the situation. "What I think is, also, the opportunity is still in play to have a settlement that could fundamentally change the whole region." Biden appeared to raise the possibility of a ceasefire in Lebanon, where Israeli strikes targeting the Hezbollah militia have killed more than 600 people this week. "They have a possibility -- I don't want to exaggerate it -- there's a possibility if we can deal with a ceasefire in Lebanon that it can move into dealing with the West Bank as well," said Biden. Israel has been carrying ...

Amazon Rainforest Tribe's Secret To Healthy Life And Slow Ageing Revealed

Deep in the Amazon rainforest, a semi-nomadic indigenous community is thriving. This community defies conventional norms on ageing and health. The Tsimanes, consisting of 16,000 people, live a fully subsistence lifestyle, relying on hunting, foraging and farming to survive. Scientists have been studying this unique group for two decades, and have uncovered remarkable findings till now. Martina Canchi Nate, an 84-year-old Tsimanes woman, digs up yucca trees, cuts down plantain trees and carries heavy loads with ease, faster than her younger companions, as per a BBC report. This level of physical activity is not unusual among Tsimanes of her age. Researchers have discovered that this group has the healthiest arteries ever studied and brains that age more slowly than those in North America, Europe and elsewhere. The Tsimanes' secret lies in their active lifestyle, with an average of 16,000 to 17,000 steps per day. They spend less than 10 percent of daylight hours in sedentary activ...