Meet Maryam Nawaz, Pakistan's Fearless Political Leader Taking On Imran Khan

Maryam Nawaz, vice-president of the Pakistan Muslim League (N), one of Pakistan’s major opposition parties, recently said that her party will not cease its anti-government campaign. Nawaz said that she “will never back down” against Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan. Her remark comes days after the Pakistan Democratic Movement (a coalition of Pakistan’s opposition parties) organised a successful anti-government rally in Karachi.

Notably, police arrested Nawaz’s husband Mohammad Safdar in Karachi hours after the rally on Monday. Commenting upon the same, Nawaz told  Dawn, “ What happened in Karachi has shown who is actually running the government … He (Imran Khan) is simply a dummy occupying a seat.”

Throughout her political career, Maryam Nawaz has been extremely vocal about her opinions and views. Here are a few things you must know about her:

• Born on October 28, 1974, Maryam Nawaz is the daughter of Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Begum Kulsoom Nawaz Sharif. She is the eldest of four siblings.

• Nawaz’s childhood was a sheltered and traditional one. She pursued her elementary and secondary education at Lahore’s Convent of Jesus and Mary.

• Despite belonging to a political family, Nawaz initially dreamt of becoming a doctor. She even secured admission to one of Lahore’s most prestigious medical colleges: King Edward Medical College. However, Nawaz dropped out of college without completing her degree when her name emerged in reports of an illegal admission scandal.

• She got married to Captain Safdar Awan in 1992 at the age of 19. Notably, Captain Awan served as the Military Secretary during Sharif’s tenure as Prime Minister.

• Nawaz has three children with Captain Awan – two daughters and one son. In 2018, she also became a grandmother after her daughter gave birth to a baby girl.

• A housewife for most of her life, her political career began in 2013 when she spearheaded a successful political campaign that helped her father become the Prime Minister of Pakistan for the third time.

• In 2016, her family suffered a major setback after the Panama Papers leak revealed that Nawaz Sharif's family was holding millions of dollars worth of property and companies in the UK and around the world.

• Nawaz rose to prominence in Pakistan’s political scenario when her father was ousted from power on charges of dishonesty and fraud in 2017. Consequently, she took over most of the party’s operations and emerged as her father’s political heir.

• In 2017, reputed international publications like The New York Times and the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) named her as one of the 100 most powerful women in the world.

• Currently, Maryam Nawaz is the leading face of the People’s Democratic Movement that has launched an agitation campaign against Pakistan’s Imran Khan-led central government.

Maryam Nawaz is widely viewed as Pakistan’s second most powerful woman leader after former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. She is consistently proving herself as a fearless and intrepid political leader who has played a vital role in reviving her family political party.

Also Read: Reham-Jemima Battle: Why Isn’t Imran Khan In The Picture?

PC: Daily Times

Tarini Gandhiok is an intern with SheThePeople.TV