Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif is a Pakistani businessman and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms. He was born on December 25, 1949, into the prominent Sharif family in Lahore. His father, Muhammad Sharif, was a successful businessman who founded the Ittefaq and Sharif groups. Nawaz Sharif’s political career began in the mid-1980s after he suffered financial losses due to the nationalization policies of the government at that time.
In 1985, Nawaz Sharif became the Chief Minister of Punjab, the most populous province in Pakistan, and he quickly gained influence as a supporter of General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq’s military government. He focused on privatization and economic liberalization, which led to an improvement in the economy of Punjab.
In 1990, Nawaz Sharif became the 12th Prime Minister of Pakistan after leading the conservative Islamic Democratic Alliance. However, his first term ended in 1993 when President Ghulam Ishaq Khan dissolved the National Assembly. Nawaz Sharif then served as the Leader of the Opposition until 1996 when the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) won the general elections, and he became the Prime Minister for the second time.
During his second term, Nawaz Sharif pursued policies of privatization, economic development, and nuclearization. In May 1998, Pakistan conducted nuclear tests in response to India’s nuclear tests, making Pakistan a nuclear-armed nation. The nuclear tests boosted his popularity among the Pakistani public.
However, his second term also faced challenges, including corruption allegations and criticism over the handling of economic issues. In 1999, his government faced a military coup led by General Pervez Musharraf, and Nawaz Sharif was removed from power and later imprisoned. He spent several years in exile but returned to Pakistan in 2007.
In 2013, Nawaz Sharif’s party, PML-N, won the general elections again, and he became the Prime Minister for the third time. His third term faced political controversies, and he was disqualified from holding public office by the Supreme Court of Pakistan in 2017 based on revelations from the Panama Papers case. He was also sentenced to prison by an accountability court.
As of the knowledge cutoff date in September 2021, Nawaz Sharif was in London for medical treatment on expired bail. Please note that political situations and events may have changed after the knowledge cutoff date.