Nawaz Sharif stands disqualified for life, rules Pakistan SC

Pakistan's Supreme Court has ruled that former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is disqualified from holding public office for life under Article 62(1) (f) of the Constitution.

A five-member bench of the top court headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar, comprising Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed, Justice Bandial, Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan and Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, announced the verdict.

Article 62(1)(f), which sets the precondition for a Member of Parliament to be "sadiq and ameen" (honest and righteous), is the same provision under which Sharif was disqualified by a five-judge SC bench headed by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa on July 28, 2017, in the Panama Papers case.

In today verdict, the SC said that under the country's Constitution, no person once disqualified from office by the top court can hold public office again. The historic ruling ended 68-year-old Sharif's hopes for a political future.

Likewise, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader Jahangir Tareen was disqualified on December 15, 2017 by a separate bench of the apex court under the same provision," reported Dawn.com.

On February 14, the apex court had reserved its decision in the case to determine the time-period that elected lawmakers will remain disqualified for.

During the hearing, the court had observed that the disqualification will continue for as long as the declaration [signed by electoral candidates declaring them honest] holds, adding that the 18th Amendment, passed in 2010, did not determine a time period for disqualification.