LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) leader Shahbaz Sharif was sworn in as Punjab chief minister in Governor House, Punjab after securing 300 votes on Thursday, Express News reported.
Sharif took his oath under Governor of Punjab Makhdoom Ahmed Mehmood.
Shahbaz and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s Mian Mahmoodur Rasheed were the only two contenders for the post.
Shahbaz was nominated by his party as the province’s chief minister for the third time.
Given the PML-N’s overwhelming majority in the Punjab assembly, it was a sure bet that Shahbaz will once again be CM. This is the third time he has won this post, the first being from 1997 to 1999 and the second from 2008 to 2013.
As the younger brother of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz was thought to be an important driving force behind party affairs and in 2013, he was thought to have “taken over the party completely” according to some PML-N sources.
Moreover, party officials say that Nawaz was of the opinion that Shahbaz was one candidate who could unite not only the party but also newly elected MPAs from across the province.
