Shehbaz Sharif returns as Pakistan’s Prime Minister amid protests in parliament

Pakistan’s newly elected Parliament endorsed Shehbaz Sharif as the country’s Prime Minister yesterday while members allied to jailed former premier Imran Khan protested against alleged rigging in last month’s general election.

National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq said Mr Sharif secured 201 votes, defeating Omar Ayub of the Sunni Ittehad Council, who got 92 votes.

The winner needs only 169 votes for a majority.

Mr Ayub had the backing of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party (PTI).

The allies of Khan, whose party was effectively barred from participating in the February 8 election, collectively won more seats than any of the parties but not enough to form a government on their own.

The PTI refused to hold talks with its rivals to form a coalition. Mr Sharif, whose Pakistan

Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) emerged with the most seats, called on members of rival parties to work with his government in his acceptance speech.

“I am offering you reconciliation. Let us sit together to work for the betterment of Pakistan,” he said after MPs loyal to Khan stood in front of the podium shouting “vote thief” and “shame”.

Mr Sharif is the younger brother of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who went into exile after being convicted of corruption during Khan’s premiership.

He became prime minister in April 2022 after the PML-N joined forces with other opposition parties to remove Khan in a no-confidence vote.

He handed over control to a caretaker government installed in August last year in preparation for the general election.

His return to the post is part of a coalition agreement with the Pakistan People’s Party headed by former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and his father, Asif Ali Zardari.

Mr Zardari, a former president, will be nominated for the post again under the agreement.

The Parliament Speaker said he has called for a joint sitting of the upper and lower houses on March 9 to select the country’s president.

MPs and four provincial assemblies elect the president for five years. Mr Sharif emphasised that the primary hurdle he faces lies in the economic realm, given Pakistan’s dependence on foreign loans to sustain its economy.

Additionally, his government will need to deal with a surge in militant attacks, enhance relations with the neighbouring Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, address deteriorating infrastructure and tackle prolonged power cuts, all while ensuring political stability.