New Delhi: Shehbaz Sharif, the leader of Opposition in the Pakistan National Assembly and the brother of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, was elected unopposed as the next premier of the country on Monday, succeeding Imran Khan.
"Today, the almighty has saved Pakistan and the 22 crore people of the country. This is the first time when the vote of no-confidence motion was successfully passed. The people of this country will celebrate this day," Shehbaz Sharif said in his first address to Parliament.
READ | Shehbaz Sharif, Opposition Leader, Elected New Prime Minister Of Pakistan
Who Is Shehbaz Sharif?
Shehbaz Sharif was born on September 23, 1951, in Lahore, Pakistan. He is the younger sibling of three-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif and is known domestically as an effective administrator.
Shehbaz Sharif has previously served as the chief minister of Punjab three times, making him the longest-serving CM of Punjab province.
Shehbaz was elected to the Punjab Provincial Assembly in 1988 and to the National Assembly in 1990. He was again elected to the Punjab Assembly in 1993 and was elected as chief minister for the first time in 1997.
After a military coup in 1999, Shehbaz along with his family spent years in exile in Saudi Arabia, returning to Pakistan in 2007.
After Pakistan Muslim League-N's victory in the 2008 Punjab general elections, he was appointed as the Chief Minister of Punjab for a second term. He was elected as Chief Minister of Punjab for the third time in 2013 and served his term.
His administrative skills were on display when, as chief minister of Pakistan's Punjab province, he worked closely with China on Beijing-funded projects for the province.
He was nominated as the President of the PML-N after his brother Nawaz Sharif was disqualified from holding office. He was nominated as the Leader of the Opposition after the 2018 election.
Several media reports suggest that Shehbaz Sharif enjoys amicable relations with Pakistan’s military.
Meanwhile last week, Shehbaz Sharif also mentioned that good ties with the US are critical for Pakistan, in contrast to Imran Khan's relationship with Washington.
Shehbaz Sharif's Statement After No-Confidence Vote
After the no-confidence vote results were announced, Shehbaz Sharif was the first speaker in the National Assembly. He thanked the united opposition to oust Imran Khan and paid tribute to all leaders part of the joint opposition.
In his brief address to the national assembly, he said that the "new regime would not indulge politics of revenge".
"I don't want to go back to the bitterness of the past. We want to forget them and move forward. We will not take revenge or do an injustice; we will not send people to jail for no reason, law and justice will take its course," Shehbaz said.