Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif resigned on Friday after the Supreme Court disqualified him from holding the post following an investigation which revealed illegal family wealth stashed abroad.
A five-judge Bench unanimously disqualified Nawaz Sharif from his post after an investigative committee linked his children to offshore companies, showing that their wealth was far above their legitimate earnings. One of the judges, Ejaz Afzal Khan, said Sharif was no longer “eligible to be an honest member of Parliament”, said agency reports.
The SC order stunned the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, which said that all was not over for Sharif and he would remain its leader. But very soon, the veteran politician stepped down as Prime Minister.
Sharif, who was Prime Minister for a third time, said he was resigning although he had “strong reservations” about the Supreme Court ruling.
Last year, Sharif had said that he would resign if corruption charges were proven against him. In a televised address to the nation in April 2016, Sharif said: “I challenge all those who allege tax fraud to come forward and present evidence. If charges are proved against me, I will resign immediately.”