Will Cancel Nawaz Sharif's Passport On February 16: Pakistan Minister

Pakistan has today said it will cancel former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's passport on February 16.

Nawaz Sharif, 70, the chief of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) and has been living in London since November, 2019 after the Lahore High Court granted him permission to go abroad for four weeks for medical treatment.

The three-time former prime minister, who was convicted in two corruption cases -- Avenfield properties and Al-Azizia -- was declared a proclaimed offender earlier this month by the Islamabad High Court after he failed to appear before it despite several warnings.

"(We) will cancel Nawaz Sharif's passport on February 16," Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed told reporters in Islamabad.

He, however, did not provide any further details.

Meanwhile, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Accountability and Interior, Mirza Shahzad Akbar, said Pakistan had asked the British authorities to deport Nawaz Sharif who has been convicted by the courts.

Pakistan currently has no extradition treaty with Britain.

Prime Minister Imran Khan in October had said he would contact his British counterpart Boris Johnson, if needed, to discuss Nawaz Sharif's deportation.

Nawaz Sharif resigned as Pakistan Prime Minister in 2017 after the Supreme Court disqualified him from holding any public office and ruled that graft cases be filed against the beleaguered leader and his children over the Panama Papers scandal.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)