Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif Butt, (Punjabi, Urdu: میاں محمد نواز شریف) (born 25 December 1949 in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan) is a Pakistani businessman and one of Pakistan's richest with an estimated net worth of $1.4 billion. He was twice elected as the 12th Prime Minister of Pakistan, serving two non-consecutive terms, the first from 1 November 1990 to 18 July 1993 and the second from 17 February 1997 to 12 October 1999. His party is the Pakistan Muslim League (N) (Nawaz group). He is best known internationally for ordering Pakistan's 1998 nuclear tests in response to India’s nuclear tests, and the abrupt end of his final term in a dramatic standoff.
Mian Mhhammed Nawaz Sharif was born in Lahore on 25 December 1949. He is the eldest son of a Kashmiri, named Mian Mohammed Sharif, joint owner of the Ittefaq Group of Industries. His mother’s family was a prominent wrestler family in the Kashmir valley though it migrated to Punjab. His father, Mohammed Sharif, was from a village in what is now the Indian state of Punjab called Jati Umra, near Amritsar also migrated from Kashmir. He migrated in 1947 to Pakistan, during partition. Muhammad Sharif was a businessman and built the Ittefaq Group of Industries . Sharif's family struggled in early fifties and sixties to earn and make these inductries . Socialist regime of PPP took these industries by force, nationalize and family was forse to leave in mid seventies. Later thses factories were restored by the then President General Mohammed Zia ul Haq. Nawaz Sharif initially attended St. Anthony's High School,but he did his matriculation from Railway High School Mughalpura,Lahore. It is known that he graduated from Government College Lahore. It is however alleged that he passed his B.A. by proxy as someone else appeared on his behalf in the Supplementary Examination in Government College Baghbanpura,Lahore. He obtained his Law Degree from the Punjab University. Which year,nobody knows because the year of passing LL.B examination is not known. He was active in cricket during his early life, playing a first class game in the season of 1973-1974 representing Pakistan Railways scoring a duck. In fact he bribed the Captain of Railway Cricket team, Arif Butt to get a chance to play first class cricket. His political career started in Punjab during the tenure of Mohammed Zia-ul-Haq. He initially joined as a member of the Punjab Advisory Council. Under the provincial government of Punjab in 1981, he served as the Minister of Finance with additional charge of Minister of Sports. During his tenure, he was credited with increasing funding for sports activities and rural projects.
He married Kulsoom Nawaz, who is the grand-niece of the great wrestler Gama Pehlwan.
Chief Minister of Punjab
He served as a Chief Minister of the largest Province of Punjab for two consecutive terms. His term started on April 9, 1985 and continued till May 31, 1988 when Zia-ul-Haq dissolved the assemblies. Following this, he was appointed as the Caretaker Chief Minister and he held on to this position up to August 13, 1990.
Prime minister
First term
The construction of Pakistan's first motorway began during Nawaz Sharifs first term in office.
Sharif first became Prime Minister on 1 November 1990, running on a conservative platform and vowing to end to corruption.During his first term, Sharif focused upon improving the infrastructure of the country, and introduced digital telecommunication in the country for the first time. He privatised government banks which opened the gate not only for private banks but also privatisation of government industry. This positive action was even followed by Benazir Bhutto whose father Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto had nationalized the blooming industry of Pakistan during his tenure as Prime Minister (1973–1977).
For the first time in the history of Pakistan, he also allowed foreign money exchange to be transacted through private money exchangers. Before that one could have bought foreign exchange only from government bank not exceeding the amount of 1000 USD. This was of immense benefit to the common people as a high percentage of the population has relatives living abroad and usually also receive remittances from abroad.But in fact he himself alongwith other rich persons took full advantage of this dubious law transferring their ill-gotten money out of Pakistan and thus clearly establishing themselves as one of the biggest Money Launderers of the world.
His government was sacked on 18 April 1993, when President Ghulam Ishaq Khan used the reserve powers vested in him by the Eighth Amendment to dissolve the National Assembly on charges of corruption, nepotism, extrajudicial killings, taking political revenge and victimisation of opponents, appointing Mir Balakh Sher Mazari as the caretaker prime minister. Six weeks later, the Supreme Court of Pakistan ruled that the Presidential order was unconstitutional, reconstituted the National Assembly and returned Sharif to power on 26 May. The Pakistan Army stepped in asking Sharif to resign, but negotiated a settlement that resulted in Sharif and President Ghulam Ishaq Khan resigning on 18 July 1993. Moin Qureshi became caretaker prime minister, and was succeeded shortly thereafter by Benazir Bhutto who was elected to office on 19 October 1993.
Second term
Sharif was re-elected Prime Minister in 1997.
In August 1997, Sharif signed the Anti-Terrorist Act which established Anti Terrorism Courts (ATC). The act was judged in 1998 unconstitutional by the Supreme Court (Merham Ali vs Pakistan).
Murder Allegations
In 2009, Pakistan's Supreme Court announced that they would hear petitions seeking the prosecution of Nawaz Sharif for the murder of Major Khalid Saeed Orakzai. Sharif is alleged to have ordered the 1997 murder of Maj Khalid Saeed Orakzai to prevent his brother Shahid Orakzai from exposing Sharif's involvement in political kickbacks.
U.S. Defense Secretary, William S. Cohen, with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, at the Pentagon, 3 December 1998.
Relations with the military
Nawaz Sharif principally rose to prominence as a staunch proponent of the military government of President Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq during the 1980s, especially maintaining ties with Lieutenant General Jilani and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Rahimuddin Khan. His political career was further facilitated by the military's tilt towards his right-wing inclinations. Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director-General Hamid Gul played a substantial role in the formation of the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad, the conservative political alliance that brought Sharif to power in 1990.
Naseerullah Babar, the Interior Minister in the PPP government had disclosed in the National Assembly in 1994 how the ISI had disbursed a lot of money to purchase the loyalty of various right wing politicians, including that of Nawaz Sharif and public figures, in order to manipulate the 1990 elections, form the Islamic Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI- Pakistan democratic alliance), and bring about the defeat of the PPP.
In 1996, Air Marshal Asghar Khan filed a human rights petition in the Supreme Court against the former chief of army staff and the former chief of the Inter-Services Intelligence, and a banker concerning the criminal distribution of the people's money for political purposes (HRC 19/96). In this case, Lt General Naseerullah Babar filed an affidavit in court supported by copies of various documents. The case is pending in the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
During Sharif's first term as prime minister, he fell out with three successive army chiefs: with General Mirza Aslam Beg over the 1991 Gulf War issue, with General Asif Nawaz over the Sindh "Operation Clean-Up" issue, and with General Abdul Waheed Kakar over the Sharif-Ishaq Imbroglio.
During his second tenure, he fell out with two other generals: General Karamat over the National Security Council, and later with General Musharraf when Nawaz did not allow an airplane carrying 180 passengers to land.(it is a false accusation as Supreme Court Of Pakistan have declared Nawaz Sharif was not Involved in any Hijacking)
It was under Abdul Waheed Kakar that Nawaz Sharif along with the then President of Pakistan Ghulam Ishaq Khan were forced to resign in 1992-93. At the end of General Waheed’s three-year term in January 1996, General Jehangir Karamat was appointed army chief. His term was due to end on 9 January 1999. In October 1998, however, Sharif fell out with General Karamat over the latter’s advocacy of the need for the creation of a "National Security Council". Sharif believed this to be a conspiracy to return the military to a more active role in Pakistani politics. Before that Sharif dismissed the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Mansur Ul Haq.
In October 1998, General Karamat resigned and Sharif appointed General Pervez Musharraf as army chief. General Jehangir Karamat was seen by many as a straight person who compromised himself and stood for the wishes of the Prime Minister. Sharif later regreted appointing Pervez Musharraf to the Chief of Army position, as Musharraf led a coup to topple Sharif's government.
Both Nisar Khan, a Nawaz league leader whose brother was defence secretary, and Shehbaz Sharif claim they arranged Musharraf's appointment. Nisar was later interned.
1998 Pakistan's nuclear tests
Pakistan's nuclear tests were perhaps an important turning point in Sharif's political career. Pakistan carried out its successful nuclear tests on 28 May 1998, and on 30 May 1998, in response to the Indian detonation of five nuclear devices roughly two weeks before. When India tested its nuclear arsenal a second time, it caused a great alarm in Pakistan. It goes to Nawaz Sharif's credit that he resisted immense pressure personally by the then President of the USA, Bill Clinton, which also included a hefty amount transfer offer in Nawaz Sharif's personal account. He held a secret meeting with Pakistani nuclear scientists and it was decided there to conduct country's first nuclear tests.[citation needed] Nawaz also high-alerted Pakistan Armed Forces in order to defend country's nuclear installations.
On 28 May 1998, the Nawaz government justified the tests on national security grounds, as they demonstrated Pakistan's nuclear deterrent capabilities against an armed Indian nuclear program. Under Nawaz Sharif's leadership, Pakistan became the first Islamic country and seventh nation to become a nuclear power.
The Nawaz Government proclaimed an emergency on the same day as these nuclear tests were conducted. All fundamental rights were suspended and all the foreign currency accounts in Pakistani banks were frozen to minimize the effects of economic sanctions. This move was not welcomed by all sections of depositors and further deteriorated the investors' and people's confidence.
The Lahore Declaration
In 1999, Nawaz Sharif met with Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee at the Wagah border and a joint communique, known as the Lahore Declaration, was signed between the two leaders.
Kargil Conflict
Nawaz Sharif was Prime Minister during the Kargil War in 1999. Sharif claimed to have no knowledge of the planned attacks, saying that Pervez Musharraf acted alone. In 2009, however, a former Pakistani military official came forward and stated that Nawaz Sharif not only knew about the plans beforehand, but gave tacit approval for them.
Proposition of an Islamic society based on the Quran
On 29 August 1998 then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif proposed a law to create an Islamic order in Pakistan and establish a legal system based on the Quran and the Sunnat. Sharif told Pakistanis that the proposed Shariat Bill was a charter of duties and not power. This came a week after Sharif informally announced the measure during the commemoration the late President Zia ul-Haq's 10-year death anniversary on 17 August. On 8 October 1998 Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif presented the Shariat Bill in the National Assembly. The Cabinet decided to present the bill on 9 October, after removing some of its controversial aspects. Had he succeeded, the existing civil code would have been replaced by the Sharia, and Nawaz Sharif would have been declared the Amir-ul-Momineen, or Commander of the Faithful, an archaic caliphate-era title that would have given him absolute power.
The Pakistani government approved and passed the bill on 10 October 1998. After the vote, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said: "I congratulate the nation on the passage of the bill which will help create a truly Islamic system". The amendment, which was passed by the National Assembly by 151 votes to 16, was then passed to the upper house of parliament for a final vote. Two-thirds majority was needed for passage in the Senate, the upper chamber. On 16 January 1999 the Nawaz Sharif Government imposed Islamic law in the traditional tribal areas of the north-west straddling the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, vowing to impose it throughout the country. However, the amendment failed in the senate and before Nawaz Sharif recovered from that setback, his government was summarily dismissed by a military coup.
Allegations of Connections to Osama Bin Laden
Former notorious Inter-Services Intelligence officer Khalid Khwaja alleged that he arranged meetings between Nawaz Sharif and Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden three times.
Ali Mohamed, a former aide to Osama bin Laden, told former FBI agent and ABC News consultant Jack Cloonan that he helped arrange a meeting between bin Laden and representatives of Nawaz Sharif. Mohamed claims that after the meeting he delivered $1 million to Sharif’s representatives as a tribute to Sharif for "not cracking down on the Taliban as it flourished in Afghanistan during Afghan Soviet War and influenced the Northwest Frontier Province". It is also noted that on one instance, Musharraf alleged Sharif of being a Closet Taliban
Military coup and Exile
1999 Pakistani coup d'état
On 12 October 1999, Sharif tried to remove Musharraf as the army chief and appoint another general Ziauddin Butt in his place. Musharraf, who was in Sri Lanka, boarded a commercial airliner to return to Pakistan. Sharif (as alleged by military generals who already planned to topple the Sharif government) ordered the Karachi airport sealed off to prevent the landing of the airliner, and ordered it to land at another Nawab Shah Airport, but Musharraf contacted top army generals who took over the country and ousted Sharif's administration. With the passage of time it is proved now, coup was planned many week earliar,when Nawaz Sharif got the knowledge of conspiracy,Military generals concocted false allegation to throw democratic government.[citation needed] Musharraf later assumed control of the government as Chief Executive.
Hijacking Case
Following his removal by a military coup, Nawaz Sharif was charged with kidnapping, attempted murder, hijacking and terrorism after he allegedly tried to block Pervez Musharraf from landing his plane at Karachi Airport.The case was quashed by Pakistan's Supreme Court in 2009.
Exile Deal with Musharraf
In December 2000, Sharif began his exile in Saudi Arabia after being pardoned by Pervez Musharraf. The government defended its decision despite the seriousness of the charges brought against him. In a press release carried by the state-run news agency, the government stated that "this decision has been taken in the best interest of the country and people of Pakistan". His exile followed a deal with the military leadership based on the following conditions:
* No further time in jail for Sharif.
* Sharif to forfeit 500 million rupees ($8.3 million) in property.
* Sharif to stay out of politics for the next 21 years.
Sharif agreed to head his party during his time in exile although it was highly unlikely that Saudi authorities would let Sharif carry out any political campaigning from their territory. Having spent his last days in a military hospital in Pakistan, he applied for medical treatment in Saudi Arabia for serious chest pains.[24]
[edit] Return from Exile
[edit] Deportation
On 7 September 2007, Justice Shabbir Hussain Chatha ordered police to arrest Shahbaz Sharif, brother of Nawaz Sharif and produce him before the court, after the hearing in Lahore. The court ruled that "Shahbaz Sharif should be arrested (at) whichever airport he lands at". Nawaz Sharif also faced detention on the pair's planned return from exile to Pakistan on 10 September 2007, to challenge President Pervez Musharraf's eight-year military rule.
On 8 September 2007, Saudi intelligence chief Prince Muqrin bin Abdul Aziz and Lebanese politician Saad Hariri arrived separately in Islamabad. In a joint press conference at the Army House, they announced that Sharif was bound under a agreement not to return to Pakistan before ten years in exile. When inquired about the details of the agreement, Prince Muqrin waved a copy to the journalists and said: "It is here and signed" [26] Although Nawaz Sharif had denied the existence of any 'exile deal' with the government before his homecoming, he later admitted that there was an agreement but that it was for only five years.
On 10 September, Nawaz Sharif arrived in Islamabad on a Pakistan International Airlines flight from London. However, he was prevented from leaving the plane as airport authorities wanted to escort him to the arrival lounge. After negotiations, Sharif agreed to leave the plane and was taken to the lounge where he was approached by the chief of the National Accountability Bureau. The chief showed him a warrant that had been issued due to the corruption charges filed against him. After the encounter, Sharif boarded another airliner to be exiled back to Saudi Arabia. "He has been sent back", a senior security official told Agence France-Presse while local television showed a PIA airplane carrying the deported Sharif to Jeddah.[27] Remarking on this incident, Pakistan's Religious Affairs Minister Muhammad Ijaz-ul-Haq stated that "He has not only embarrassed Pakistan but also the leadership of Saudi Arabia by violating the agreement."
[edit] Reactions to Deportation
On presenting him before the Court, the European Union asked the Pakistani government to respect the court ruling. In Washington, D.C., Sean McCormack of the White House stated that the deportation was an "internal matter" but said that elections should be "free and fair", while also showing disapproval of Musharraf's actions . But the United States organisation Human Rights Watch accused the Pakistan Government of violating international law. Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League condemned the deportation by filing a contempt suit in the Supreme Court of Pakistan. His brother Shahbaz Sharif was due to travel with Sharif from London but changed his plans at the last minute.
Successful Return to Pakistan
On 25 November 2007, several weeks after the return of Benazir Bhutto, Nawaz Sharif was able to return to Pakistan. He was not arrested and, like Bhutto, was able to return to political activity.
Post-Exile
Assassination of Benazir Bhutto
On 27 December, in a CNN interview just hours after the assassination of former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, Sharif said:
“ It is not a sad day, it is a dark, darkest, gloomiest day in the history of this country. ”
Sharif called Bhutto his sister and vowed to avenge her death.
2008 General Elections
On 26 November 2007, Nawaz Sharif filed for the January Parliamentary elections. He handed in his papers in Lahore filing for two parliamentary seats.
Mr Sharif announced that his party's single-point agenda was to reinstate the judges that had been dismissed during Musharraf's November 2008 Emergency rule. However, the People's Party claimed that this was simply an issue that could be decided by an act of parliament. Following Benazir's assassination, Sharif met with Asif Ali Zardari, Benazir's widower and the new Co-chairman of the People's Party and convinced him to boycott the General Elections . Zardari disagreed with Sharif's stance and argued that a combined opposition had a significant electoral advantage due to the failed policies of the Musharraf government. In a press conference, Nawaz Sharif announced that he will contest the in the Elections as it will unite the opposition against Musharraf's rule.
The General Elections took place on Monday 18 February 2008 and the results were announced the following day. Sharif's party, the Pakistan Muslim League (N) successfully managed to secure 68 seats of the 272 seats in the National Assembly. However, as the People's Party won 88 seats, the PML(N) was not able to form a majority in the Parliament. In the Province of Punjab, the PML(N) won a majority of the seats in the provincial assembly giving it the ability to form its own government. On the same day, Nawaz Sharif said that he would welcome any members of the Pakistan Muslim League (Q), which had lost in the elections, back into the parent party that they had previously split from. Both leaders, Asif Ali Zardari and Nawaz Sharif decided that their parties will work together as a common opposition in the National Parliament.
Running for By-Elections
On Tuesday, 26 February 2008, Nawaz announced that he and his brother Shabaz Sharif would run in by-elections upcoming in the country within the next few weeks, to become Members of Parliament, since they have no restrictions against them. the PML (N) left it to the PPP to chose a Prime Minister, since they had agreed to form a coalition government.
Nawaz Sharif challenged the petition filed by the federal government against the acceptance of Mr Sharif’s candidature for National Assembly seat-121. Ashtar Ausaf Ali, former Advocate General of Punjab, was the lawyer representing Nawaz Sharif in this case.
On 27 June 2008, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz won 3 by-election seats in the National Assembly, followed by the Pakistan Peoples Party that managed to secure 2 seats in the assembly. In Lahore, the polls were postponed for the 6th seat in the city as Nawaz Sharif was declared ineligible to contest. This declaration was made by a court that ruled that his old conviction in a previous case made him ineligible to hold public office, thus postponing the vote in the constituency. The government filed an appeal in the Supreme Court, that said it would hear the case on 30 June. In the provincial assemblies in which by-elections were held, the PPP and PML(N) won 19 of the 23 vacant seats. It was claimed that this result would not affect the result's of the February General Elections.
2008 Musharraf impeachment
On 7 August 2008, the Pakistan Peoples Party and the Pakistan Muslim League (N) agreed to force Musharraf to step down and begin his impeachment. Asif Ali Zardari and Nawaz Sharif, announced sending a formal request or joint charge sheet that he steps down, and impeach him through parliamentary process upon refusal. Musharraf, however, said: “I will defeat those who try to push me to the wall. If they use their right to oust me, I have the right to defend myself." Pervez Musharraf, accordingly delayed his departure for the Beijing Olympics, by a day. A senior coalition official told Reuters: "Yes, we have agreed in principle to impeach him." The draft of the ruling coalition’s joint statement had been finalized by the draft Committee, and Musharraf must obtain vote of confidence from the National Assembly and 4 provincial assemblies. The government summoned the National Assembly to sit on 11 August. Capt. Wasif Syed, spokesman for the Pakistan Peoples Party, confirmed: "A decision has been made that he has to go now, and all the parties have agreed on this point".
On 18 August 2008, Musharraf resigned as President of Pakistan.
Presidential election
Pakistan's Election Commission on 22 August announced that Presidential elections would be held on [6 September, and the nomination papers could be filed from 26 August The president is elected by the two houses of parliament and the four provincial assemblies. There was speculation that Nawaz Sharif would run for President, but on 25 August 2008, Nawaz Sharif announced that Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui would be the Pakistan Muslim League (N) nominee to replace Pervez Musharraf as President of Pakistan. Siddiqui was defeated by Asif Ali Zardari for the presidency.
Reinstatement of Judges
Nawaz Sharif stated that: "I want to inform the entire nation that on Monday 12 May 2008, all deposed judges will be restored; the national assembly will approve a resolution the same day." The judges included Iftikhar Chaudhry and the 60 judges sacked by President Musharraf under emergency rule in November 2007. On 9–11 May, Mr Sharif met PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari over the weekend in London to discuss the deadlock and the official date of the judges reinstatement, but the meetings dissolved without an mutual agreement that could be agreed upon. When the deadline was crossed, Sharif announced that his party members are withdrawing from the federal cabinet and effectively resigning from the coalition government.
After the refusal by the president to restore the deposed judges, Sharif decided to join the lawyers movement. He planned on starting a long march from Karachi and Quetta simultaneously on 12 March 2009, reaching Islamabad and staging a permanent sit-in till restoration of all deposed judges. Sharif planned to attend a banned political rally in Islamabad on 16 March 2009, to pressurize the government to reinstate the deposed judges, but was instead placed under house arrest.
Ineligibility to contest
On 23 June 2008, the LHC ruled that Nawaz Sharif was ineligible to contest by-elections because of previous criminal conviction. Afterwards on 25 February 2009, the Supreme Court not only upheld the ban placed by LHC on Nawaz Sharif from contesting the elections but also annulled the notification of the Election Commission (EC), declaring Shahbaz Sharif a member of the provincial assembly. Providing its detailed judgement in the Sharif brothers' disqualification case, the Supreme Court (SC) said: "Nawaz was publicly propagating his biased opinion, and was defaming the judiciary and the armed forces of Pakistan. Nawaz Sharif was a defaulter of consortium of National Bank of Pakistan, Habib Bank Limited, United Bank Limited, Agricultural Development Bank of Pakistan, Muslim Commercial Bank, PICIC, Bank of Punjab and the First Punjab Mudarba and cases for recovery of loans were pending before the Lahore High Court".
Later, when the deposed judges were reinstated, the Supreme Court on 27 May 2009, declared the Pakistan Muslim League (N) chief Nawaz Sharif and his brother Shahbaz Sharif eligible to contest elections and lifted the ban on their holding elected office.
While submitting an appeal against the 10 October 2000 Sindh High Court (SHC) verdict of upholding the conviction awarded by the Anti Terrorist Court (ATC), Sharif requested the apex court to set aside the conviction, adding he was filing the petition irrespective of the consequences flowing from the presidential pardon under Article 45 of the Constitution. Sharif has already approached the Rawalpindi Bench of the Lahore High Court by filing an appeal against his 14 years imprisonment by an accountability court in July 2000 helicopter case. On Friday 17 July 2009, a five-member larger bench of the Supreme Court announced the brief verdict on Nawaz Sharif's appeal against his conviction in the plane hijacking case.
Removal of Bar on Third Term
On 2 April 2010, the Government of Pakistan tabled the 18th Amendment Bill in the Parliament that would remove the bar on former prime ministers to stand for only two terms in office. This would allow Nawaz Sharif to be re-elected to the post of Prime Minister for the third time.
(source:wikipedia)
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