Amid ruckus in National Assembly, Shehbaz Sharif elected as Pakistan's PM for second time

Islamabad [Pakistan], Mar 03: The Pakistan National Assembly on Sunday elected Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) leader Shehbaz Sharif as the 24th elected Prime Minister of the country in a session that started with Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) members creating a ruckus by shouting slogans, Pakistan-based Geo News reported.

Pakistan National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq announced Shehbaz Sharif has been elected Pakistan's PM as he secured 201 votes while Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) candidate for prime minister, Omar Ayub Khan, received 92 votes. He made the announcement amid protests by the SIC lawmakers, the report said.

The session is being chaired by Sardar Ayaz Sadiq. The session started with the oath-taking of PML-N leader Jam Kamal. However, the House soon started echoing slogans and chants raised by SIC members in favour of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan and the eight-party alliance backing Shehbaz Sharif.

Following this, Sadiq asked the Assembly staff to ring the bell for five minutes so that any member that is not present in the house could come to the floor for the PM's election. After the bells were rung, Sadiq directed the National Assembly staff to lock the doors and announced the method for electing PM, according to Geo News report.

Following this, the Pakistan National Assembly speaker informed the lawmakers about the candidates who were contesting for the PM's post. He said, "Valid nominated candidates are Shehbaz Sharif and Omar Ayub. Honourable members who wish to vote in favour of Shehbaz may proceed to the lobby on the right side designated as 'Lobby A'."

Ayaz Sadiq then asked those who want to vote for Omar Ayub Khan can proceed to the left-hand side towards "Lobby B" to get their votes recorded. As the voting process started, members of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) announced a boycott of the elections and walked out of the house, according to Geo News report.

Balochistan National Party's Sardar Akhtar Mengal did not vote, however, he remained on his seat in the Assembly. After the polling process concluded, the Pakistan National Assembly secretary gave details regarding the voting process to the speaker. After the completion of counting, Ayaz Sadiq ordered the Pakistan National Assembly staff to ring the bell to summon the lawmakers back in the house for the announcement of the results.