Shehbaz Sharif likely to return as Pakistan PM: 10 things to know about PML-N leader

Shehbaz entered the world of politics in the 1980s

Shehbaz Sharif, the younger brother of former premier Nawaz Sharif, looks set to begin a second term as Pakistan's Prime Minister in the days ahead.

In a surprise decision, he was picked by his Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) (PML-N) party and coalition allies to head the nation, though three-time Prime Minister Nawaz was widely expected to take the position.

The recent parliamentary elections in India's neighbouring country threw up a hung house, with the independent candidates allied to imprisoned former PM Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party securing a commanding lead with more than 100 seats in the 266-member assembly.

PML-N followed second with 75 seats and former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) got 54 seats. They have been promised support by other parties for a majority.

Who is Shehbaz Sharif?

1. PML (Nawaz) picked Shehbaz Sharif as the PM candidate over party chief and three-time former PM Nawaz Sharif.

2. Born on September 23, 1951 in Lahore, Shehbaz Sharif hails from the illustrious Sharif family, which has remained a dominant force in the Pakistani politics for decades.

3. Shehbaz entered politics in the 1980s. He served as the Chief Minister of Punjab, Pakistan's most populous province, for multiple terms. The younger Sharif is known more as a good administrator than a politician.

4. He played an important role in keeping together a coalition of disparate parties for 16 months after parliament voted former premier and rival Imran Khan out of office in 2022.

5. He became Prime Minister in 2022 as his party buried differences with the powerful military in the face of their common rival, Khan. Khan was reportedly at odds with top generals over policy differences. Shehbaz was in the top role till August 2023 when parliament was dissolved ahead of last week's election.

6. His biggest achievement in his short tenure was clinching a bailout from the IMF with Pakistan on the brink of a debt default.

7. Under his government, however, inflation touched a high of 38 percent with record depreciation of the rupee currency – mainly due to structural reforms necessitated by the IMF programme to stabilise the economy.

8. Shehbaz's second term begins at a difficult time, with inflation rising to unprecedented levels and the national currency witnessing significant depreciation.

9. Married twice, Shehbaz has two sons and two daughters from his first marriage and none from the second. One of the sons is in politics but the others are not in public life.

10. His second wife is Tehmina Durrani, who is the author of My Feudal Lord, an autobiography about an abusive married life with an earlier husband.

(With Reuters inputs)