UK's first Muslim MP to run Pakistan's most populous provinc

Britain's first Muslim lawmaker, who once faced down racist death threats from his opponents, has returned to his native Pakistan as governor of the country's most populous province, he told Reuters on Wednesday.

Mohammed Sarwar, a former member of Britain's parliament representing the opposition Labour party, had to renounce his British citizenship to take on the largely ceremonial post in Punjab. He was officially appointed on Tuesday.

"Everything that I have learnt in my time in Britain - the knowledge and how to run institutions - I can use it for the benefit of Pakistanis," said Sarwar, 60, who was born in Punjab.

"I can be a bridge between overseas Pakistanis and Pakistanis here and work for the betterment of both."

Punjab is home to half of Pakistan's 180 million people and is the country's wealthiest province, thanks to its fertile fields and industry in the booming city of Lahore, home to an ancient Mughal fort.