LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chairman Raja Zafarul Haq indicated on Tuesday that Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif would take over as party president after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) issued a reminder about his elder brother Nawaz Sharif’s disqualification by the Supreme Court.

“The younger Sharif has been selected to replace Nawaz based on the wishes of a majority of party members,” Mr Haq was quoted as saying in an interview to BBC Urdu.

DawnNews earlier repor­ted that the PML-N was holding a meeting of senior members, including Fina­nce Minister Ishaq Dar and former interior minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan.

In a letter to Mr Haq, the ECP had asked the PML-N to fill the vacant post of its president after the disqualification of former prime minister Sharif.

“If the office of president falls vacant due to death, resignation or any other reason before the expiry of the term of his office, it shall be the duty of the secretary general to convene within seven days a meeting of the central working committee (CWC) to elect an acting president and fix a date for the meeting of the council of PML-N within 45 days of the occurrence of vacancy to elect the president.

“You are therefore, required to take necessary action on immediate basis and inform the ECP about the course of action at your end,” the letter said.

Hr Haq’s post of chairman is said to be a symbolic office as all decisions of the party are taken by the president.

The Supreme Court disqualified Mr Sharif on July 28 for failing to show in his nomination papers for the 2013 polls his undrawn receivables from the Capital Free Zone Establishment (FZE), a private company at Jebel Ali in the United Arab Emirates. “Having furnished a false declaration under solemn affirmation, respondent No-1 (Nawaz Sharif) is not honest in terms of Section 99(1) of ROPA (Representation of the People Act) and Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution, and therefore he is disqualified to be a member of the Majlis-i-Shoora (parliament),” the judgement said.

The court had asked the ECP to implement the order and de-notify the membership of Mr Sharif.

In pursuance of the judgement, the ECP de-notified Mr Sharif as a member of parliament the following day.

Following his ouster, the PML-N has made former petroleum minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi the new premier, but has so far not elected a new party president.

Mr Sharif is being accused of holding PML-N meetings and taking decisions despite the fact that after disqualification he is not allowed to chair a party session.

According to the Political Parties Order 2002: “A person shall not be appointed or serve as an office-bearer of a political party if he is not qualified to be, or is disqualified under Article 63 of the Constitution or under any other law for the time being in force.”

A petition was recently filed in the Islamabad High Court, seeking the de-notification of the PML-N because it carried the name of Mr Sharif, who had been disqualified.

The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has also decided to approach the ECP against Mr Sharif for holding the post of PML-N president in violation of the law.

PTI leaders also raised objections over Prime Minister Abbasi having consulted the ousted leader about the formation of the new federal cabinet. They were of the view that after disqualification, Mr Sharif was no more ‘honest’ and ‘sagacious’ and, therefore, was “ineligible to hold any office”.

Published in Dawn, August 9th, 2017