Nawaz Sharif’s opponents celebrate after the Supreme Court verdict in Karachi on Friday. REUTERS

Islamabad, July 28

Pakistan’s Supreme Court today disqualified Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for dishonesty and ruled that corruption cases be filed against him and his children over the Panama Papers scandal, forcing the embattled leader to resign. It is the third time that the 67-year-old veteran politician’s term as premier has been cut short. Edit: Nawaz Sharif nailedThe verdict plunged Pakistan into a political crisis at a time when it is facing a brittle economy and a surge in militancy. As the unanimous verdict by the five-judge Bench was read out, a large number of Opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf workers celebrated outside, chanting “Go Nawaz, go”.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)The court disqualified Sharif under Articles 62 and 63 of Pakistan’s Constitution that state that an MP should be truthful and righteous. “He is disqualified as a member of parliament so he has ceased to be holding the office of Prime Minister,” the Bench said. It ordered the Election Commission to issue a notification for Sharif’s disqualification. Subsequently, Sharif’s election from NA-120 constituency (in Lahore) was denotified. The federal Cabinet also stands dissolved.Shehbaz Sharif, the younger brother of Nawaz Sharif, was most likely to succeed him. No name has been announced for interim PM, who will fill the 45-day vacuum until Shehbaz, 65, is elected to the National Assembly. The Supreme Court disqualified Sharif for failing to declare “receivable” salary from a UAE-based company of his son in the 2013 nomination paper. It termed the salary, which was not paid to Sharif, as an “asset”. Following the verdict, a spokesperson of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) said Sharif had stepped down, “despite reservations regarding different phases of the Panama case proceedings”.The SC ordered the National Accountability Bureau to initiate a corruption case against Sharif, his sons Hussain and Hassan and daughter Maryam within six weeks and that the trial be completed within six months of the filing of the case. The court also ordered a criminal investigation into the assets of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Sharif’s trusted aide, and Capt Muhammad Safdar, Sharif’s son-in-law and a member of the National Assembly.Imran Khan of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and a petitioner in the Panama case, hailed the verdict. The cricketer-turned-politician said: “It’s a moment of joy for Pakistan because for the first time the Supreme Court has disqualified the most powerful man in Pakistan, who has been ruling for 30 years.” Former military dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf, now living in Dubai, congratulated the nation. Chairman of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto Zardari urged everyone to respect the verdict.No Pakistani PM has ever completed his term. It is the second time in its 70-year history that the SC has disqualified a sitting PM. — PTI 

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