Here is a look at the life of Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
Personal:
Birth date: December 25, 1949
Birth place: Lahore, Pakistan
Birth name: Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif
Father: Muhammad Sharif
Mother: Shamim Akhtar
Marriage: Kulsoom Sharif
Children: two sons and two daughters
Education: Government College Lahore; Punjab University Law College, Law degree, Lahore, Pakistan
Other Facts:
Although elected Prime minister on three separate occasions, and is Pakistan’s longest-serving prime minister, he never completed a term.
Timeline:
1977 – Opens Ittefaq Industries, a family business involved in the steel, sugar and textile industries.
1981 – Is appointed Pakistan’s finance minister.
1985 – Becomes chief minister of Punjab province.
October 1990 – Is elected as Pakistan’s prime minister.
November 6, 1990 – Is sworn in as prime minister.
April 18, 1993 – Sharif’s government is dismissed by President Ghulam Ishaq Khan after charges of corruption and mismanagement are raised. Sharif’s family-owned business grew tremendously during his tenure in office, causing suspicion of corruption.
May 26, 1993 – Pakistan’s Supreme Court orders the reinstatement of Sharif, calling his dismissal unconstitutional and the charges false. Sharif and Khan both later resign.
February 3, 1997 – Is re-elected as prime minister.
February 17, 1997 – Is sworn in as prime minister.
October 12, 1999 – Army General Pervez Musharraf overthrows Sharif in a bloodless coup.
January 2000 – Sharif goes on trial for charges of hijacking/terrorism and conspiracy to commit murder.
April 6, 2000 – Is convicted of plane hijacking/terrorism and sentenced to life imprisonment. He is charged with hijacking because he attempted to prevent a plane Musharraf was flying in from landing at any airport in Pakistan, when the plane was low on fuel. Sharif knew of Musharraf’s coup intentions.
July 22, 2000 – Is convicted of corruption and sentenced to an additional 14-years imprisonment while already serving a life sentence. His failure to declare assets and pay taxes led to the conviction.
December 2000 – Is released from prison by a deal brokered by the Saudi royal family.
December 2000-August 2007- In exile in Saudi Arabia.
October 29, 2004 – Mian Muhammad Sharif, Nawaz’s father, dies and Sharif seeks a brief return to Pakistan to attend his funeral, after serving only four of his 10-year exile in Saudi Arabia. The request is denied.
August 23, 2007 – Pakistan’s Supreme court lifts the exile imposed on Sharif. He served only seven of his 10-year exile.
September 10, 2007 – Attempts to return to Pakistan but is deported just hours after his arrival.
November 25, 2007 – Sharif returns to Pakistan from exile in Saudi Arabia, flying into the city of Lahore.
February 18, 2008 – In parliamentary elections, Sharif’s party Pakistan Muslim League-N wins 67 seats, placing second to the party of the late Benazir Bhutto, the PPP.
February 20, 2008 – The PPP and the Pakistan Muslim League-N announce that they will form a coalition government.
August 25, 2008 – At a press conference, Sharif announces his party, the Pakistan Muslim League-N, is splitting from the coalition government it formed with the PPP, following disagreements over the reinstatement of judges Musharraf dismissed.
May 26, 2009 – The Supreme Court of Pakistan rules that Sharif is eligible to run in elections and hold public office. In February 2009, the court had ruled that Sharif was ineligible for office because he had a criminal conviction. He is still ineligible to run for prime minister due to term limits.
July 17, 2009 – Pakistan’s Supreme Court clears Sharif of hijacking charges, paving the way for him to legally run for office.
April 19, 2010 – Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari voluntarily signs the 18th Amendment to the constitution, significantly diminishing his powers. Among the sweeping changes is a measure removing the two-term limit for prime ministers, allowing Sharif to vie for a third term.
June 5, 2013 – Is elected prime minister of Pakistan.
August 30, 2014 – Sharif announces in a statement that he will not resign. He has vowed to remain on the job despite violent demonstrations. The protesters have accused him of rigging last year’s elections that allowed his party to take power.
December 16, 2014 – Sharif lifts the 2008 moratorium on the death penalty after the Taliban attack a school, killing 145 people, most of them children. He also announces “that the distinction between good and bad Taliban will not be continued at any level.”
November 30, 2016 – In violation of diplomatic protocol, Sharif’s office releases a statement quoting his recent conversation with President-elect Donald Trump.
July 28, 2017 – Sharif resigns shortly after Pakistan’s Supreme Court rules that he has been dishonest to Parliament and to the judicial system and is no longer fit for office.
