Pakistan's Election Commission yesterday barred former prime minister and opposition leader Nawaz Sharif from a January 8 general election because of his criminal record.

Sharif, a two-time prime minister overthrown in 1999 by the then army chief, Pervez Musharraf, has been threatening to boycott the January 8 elections but had nonetheless registered to run.

"His nomination papers are rejected because of his convictions," presiding election official Raja Qamaruzaman said in the eastern city of Lahore, Sharif's power base, where last week he filed his nomination.