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Pakistan's parliament will meet on August 1 to elect a new prime minister after the resignation of Nawaz Sharif.

Sharif resigned on July 28 shortly after the country's Supreme Court ordered his removal from office in connection with corruption charges stemming from the Panama Papers leak in 2016.

He has denied any wrongdoing.

Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) holds a commanding majority in parliament, and the party's nominee Shahid Khaqan Abbasi is expected to be approved in the parliamentary vote on August 1.

The opposition is expected to name a candidate to challenge Abassi, a staunch Sharif loyalist and former oil minister.

Sharif proposed Abbasi as interim prime minister until his brother Shahbaz Sharif, who is the chief minister of Punjab Province, can contest a by-election for the seat left vacant by his brother's resignation.

Shahbaz Sharif, 65, has been in charge of Punjab since 2008. He has built a reputation as a competent administrator and has so far been unscathed by the corruption allegations engulfing his brother's family.

Copyright (c) 2015. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.

Category: Legal & Politics