Islamabad: PML-N chief and former Pakistani Premier Nawaz Sharif today filed nomination papers for parliamentary bye-elections to be held next month from two constituencies in Rawalpindi and Lahore.
Sharif's papers were filed for a National Assembly seat in Rawalpindi that was won by senior PML-N leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan in the February 18 general election. Khan gave up the seat as he had won from more than one constituency.
Sharif had obtained nomination papers for two constituencies in Rawalpindi but opted to file the papers for only one seat. His son-in-law, Capt (retired) Safdar has filed his nomination papers for the other seat.
The former premier also filed nomination papers to contest by-elections from a National Assembly constituency in Lahore. Senior PML-N leader Javed Hashmi won from this constituency in the general election but gave up the seat as he had won in three constituencies.
PML-N leaders, members of the national and provincial assemblies and ministers of Punjab province accompanied Sharif when he went to a local court to file his nominations. Sharif could not contest the February 18 polls as his nomination papers were rejected by election authorities due to his conviction on various charges after being deposed by President Pervez Musharraf in a military coup in 1999. Till recently, Sharif had been non-committal on the issue of contesting the bypolls.
