Supreme court restores Shahbaz Sharif as CM Punjab

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan has issued a stay order on Tuesday against the disqualification of Pakistan Muslim League-N President Mian Shahbaz Sharif. Mian Shahbaz Sharif has been restored as Chief Minister of Punjab immediately following the issuance of the stay order.

The apex court bench, headed by Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jilani, heard Sharif brothers’ eligibility case.

According to the verdict, Shahbaz Sharif's government has been restored and he will continue serving as chief minister till the Supreme Court passes a final verdict into Sharif brothers’ eligibility case.

The court on February 25 disqualified Nawaz Sharif and his brother and Punjab chief minister Shahbaz Sharif from contesting elections and holding public office, a decision which caused widespread protests and flung the country into weeks of political chaos.

The government on March 19 filed appeals against the decision and has since reinstated Supreme Court chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry in a package of measures designed to defuse the standoff.

"The supreme court has suspended the February 25 decision," Syed Zafar Ali Shah, a lawyer and leader in Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) party, told reporters outside the court.