Opposition plans rally amid condemnation of plan to install Nawaz Sharif ally as interim PM until Sharif’s brother is eligiblePakistan’s parliament will elect a new prime minister on Tuesday to replace ousted leader Nawaz Sharif, with ruling party stalwart Shahid Khaqan Abbasi expected to become interim leader until Sharif’s own brother is eligible. The confirmation from parliament came after Pakistan’s president, Mamnoon Hussain, convened a special session following Sharif’s decision to put forward his ally Abbasi as interim leader and named his brother Shahbaz, 65, as long-term successor. Sharif’s PML-N holds a majority with 188 seats in the 342-member parliament, so it should be able to swiftly install its choice, barring any defections from its own ranks. A quick handover could ease political upheaval sparked by the supreme court’s decision on Friday to disqualify Sharif for not declaring a source of income. “Wheel of development is moving and may God keep it rolling and may it never stop,” he told members of the PML-N on Saturday night.

Source: The Guardian July 30, 2017 13:59 UTC