In a dramatic development today, former prime minister and exiled PML(N) leader Nawaz Sharif has been deported to Saudi Arabia. Sharif, who announced his return to Pakistan earlier this month after seven years of exile, was sent back to Saudi Arabia just few hours after his arrival in Pakistan.
He spent around 4 hours at airport, negotiating with Saudi and Pakistani officials. Deportation was certainly one of the options that Government of Pakistan had but not many analysts believed that they would actually go ahead with it. Till the last minute, it appeared from electronic media coverage of the event that Nawaz Sharif will be arrested and jailed and even the arrest warrants were produced and charges were handed over to Nawaz Sharif. We saw visuals of his arrest in which he was man-handled by police officials. But then we heard in a dramatic manner that he is being sent back to Saudi Arabia in a special PIA flight. Now we will see another legal battle if this action is a contempt of Supreme Court of Pakistan’s verdict on Nawaz Sharif’s return in August.
Geo website has this report on the event:
Former Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif was sent back into exile Monday. According to reports he has been sent to Saudi Arabia in a special airplane. Earlier, the flight of former prime minister Mian Nawaz Sharif was landed at Islamabad Airport at the scheduled time of 8:42 am Monday morning. The military and security forces troops were deployed at Islamabad airport. In Islamabad, Police and PML-N workers were engaged in hide and seek and scuffles at various places.
Media men were restricted to parking lot of the airport as the airplane of former prime minister landed at the airport. The interior ministry officials and other top officials of the government were present at the airport on the occasion. Mian Nawaz Sharif traveled in the Club Class from London to Islamabad and before landing at Islamabad he went to the economy class to join the party workers.
Geo News correspondent Azhar Javed who was accompanied with Nawaz Sharif in air journey to Islamabad reported that Muslim League workers surrounded their leader and chanted slogans. Mian Nawaz Sharif later taken out of the airplane from backdoor. A flying coach was parked near the plane, which was cordoned off by the police commandoes, Azhar Javed reported. The former prime minister left the plane after 90 minutes and held talks with the government of Pakistan officials and Saudi government representatives. The matter of his returning back into exile to Saudi Arabia was also discussed but Nawaz Sharif opted to be arrested at home instead of going back into exile.
Later he was detained and sent back to Jeddah by a special airplane.
This entire episode raises many questions in the minds of ordinary Pakistanis. Is this violation of SC order? Why didn’t government just arrest him and put him on trial, if there are any cases against him? What will happen now in court and does this mean that government is going ahead with direct confrontation with superior courts? And what it would mean to already growing confrontation between Army and the civil society? We really don’t know. All we can hope, as an ordinary Pakistani, that may Allah have mercy on Pakistan. I am NO fan of Nawaz, Benazir or most of our politicians because of their past performances but I would rather see people of Pakistan deciding their fate through power of ballet and vote and NOT some individuals sitting in President’s House making decisions. I do not see anything good coming out today’s actions and I think its a big setback to rule of law.
One of ATP reader, Saleem A. Taimoor, made a very valid and appropriate comment on my earlier post on Nawaz Sharif return and I personally share his views. Situation in Pakistan today concludes following:
1. Army has been put in direct confrontation with the civil society.
2. People hate to see green lawns and swimming pools inside the army cantonments as well Mercedes for generals on the streets; where over 40% of the people can’t have one day meal, this new elite is eating up all resources – look at the Defense Housing Authorities, posh livnig styles of the army officers and their families, best schools and hospitals run at Income tax payers money; hate has gone deep within the masses for the army not for the general alone. Musharraf has pulled the army in this quagmire.
3. Tens (if not hundreds) of soldiers have died in armed clashes with civilians and in bomb blasts.
4. Media and the judiciary are being put to test with oppressive measures.
5. Government is ready to take on the judiciary now (starting with today’s deportation of Nawaz). Executive is not ready to obey the judiciary.
6. Youth is getting disconnected with Pakistan – all running around for safe havens abroad or for grabbing too much money to join the elite – the social fabric is quickly disintegrating.
7. The parliament is full of people who are unable to comprehend the social disintegration we are going through.
I am sure there are thousands of others who share the same views. Whether you like or dislike Nawaz Sharif or Benazir, both of them should be free to return to this country and allowed to face any charges against them. It is the people of Pakistan who should decide who they want to elect as their representatives and not some army generals who decide our fate in the name of national security. We want Pakistan to be a Social Welfare State and which was the dream of its founding fathers and NOT a National Security State which, unfortunately, it has become now.
As Adnan Siddiqi rightly pointed out in his blog post, there is a sad and brutal side of this story too. Nawaz Sharif landed, arrested and deported. Musharraf stayed in his office while Nawaz either stayed in plane or in lounge then forced to go back to Saudia. All were having fun time. Who suffered then?See yourself?
May Allah have mercy on Pakistan and its 160 million citizens and give our rulers wisdom to make the right decisions. Ameen.
I wonder, when the people of Pakistan will understand the real sence of democracy. Democracy has two invariable truths engrasping in it, democracy is too delicate thing that it can be dilapidated any time, but once it ruines you can’t rejoin everything as that of before. These two facts are not alien to pakistanies that the democracy of this country has been challenged several time by the military.
Hei, Pakistanies dont you see your leaders are too coward than you to challenge the military regime as they know the power and possession of miliotary than you. Politics is something devotional, Navaz once made an agreement that distroyed his state as a pakistani, as a leader and as a cotender against the miliotary regieme. Now when the vetaran Iftikar Chaudheri ruled the legality of his citizenship Navas tried a futal attempt for his effervesent return to the homeland. It sence he is willing to conform the part of the loave in the on comming general elections. People should understand they are more couragious than the existing leaders, who are in exile. Politics is the device meant to protect the nation in the adverse conditions otherwise those who face it should upraised to that possition. Mr. Chaudhari, in my humble view point is a corrageous man to cut both the pseudo politica and the military.
Thank you Musharraf for keep the dirt on the side….
Nawaz sharif is mistreated because he is a civilain. I dont like Nawaz, but we (civilian) owe respect from our country.
It is a time for all of us( civilians) to think our place in Pakistan and we should fight to get our dignity back. It is 21st century. No more jackboot!
Yes economy is doing good, but it is because of Shaukat Aziz and some civilians like him. It is not because of jackboot.
The likes of Mian Nawaz Sharif and Benzir are spent political cartridges! What a joke are these politicians. They spend their time in luxury and leisure in Dubai, London and the US and all of a sudden when its election time, their cuckoo clocks start. BB is so desperate that she scrambles for the DEAL leaving behind the so called Charter of Democracy and Mian Nawaz who first said that their was no agreement now says after 7 years of stay in London that their was a 5 year agreement! The economy was in shambles in both the combined democratic tenures!! In Nawaz’s time budget was delayed so that the national reserves could reach US$1B!! Today the reserves are US$16.6B!!! I’m not too fond of non-democratic governments, but as Clintonites once retorted…..ITS THE ECONOMY STUPID!! I have to agree
@ AUK …very sad and bitter truth…i fully agree…