World News: Khan MPs resign as Sharif elected Pakistan premier – Gulf Digital News

World News: Khan MPs resign as Sharif elected Pakistan premier – Gulf Digital News

ISLAMABAD: More than 100 MPs loyal to Pakistan’s toppled prime minister Imran Khan have resigned, creating a headache for the new, Western-friendly incumbent Shehbaz Sharif as he tries to drag his country out of political and economic crisis.

Parliament’s election of Sharif, 70, as prime minister yesterday followed a week-long constitutional crisis that reached a climax on Sunday when Khan, 69, lost a no-confidence vote in parliament.

His departure from power sparked street protests and a mass resignation of MPs from Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party in protest at the impending change of government.

If the resignations are accepted by the speaker, Pakistan faces a prospect of more than 100 by-elections within two months, a major distraction for Sharif and his coalition partners and a potential platform for Khan to mobilise his support.

That in turn could ensure the nuclear-armed nation of 220 million people remains prone to political and economic turbulence.

Sharif has a reputation domestically as an effective administrator more than as a politician. He is the younger brother of three-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif.

Analysts say Shehbaz, unlike Nawaz, enjoys amicable relations with Pakistan’s military, which traditionally controls foreign and defence policy.

After yesterday’s vote, Sharif vowed to tackle an economic malaise that has seen