Adil Najam
Former Prime Minister and PML(N) leader Nawaz Sharif is back in Pakistan.
Reportedly he landed in Lahore to a large reception by his supporters and was escorted to a special bullet proof car that had been brought for him. According to The News:
A special plane carrying the PML-N Chief Nawaz Sharif, his brother Shahbaz Sharif and other family members arrived in Lahore from the holy city of Madina on Sunday evening. The convoys of PML-N workers arrived in Lahore to accord rousing welcome to Sharifs. Large welcome banners and pictures of Sharif brothers have been displayed at several places in Lahore. The special plane Boeing777 carried Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif along with 26 members of their family from the holy city of Madina.
The central and provincial leaders of PML-N, lawyers and members of civil society have arrived to receive Sharifs at Lahore Airport. Nawaz Sharif is expected to first visit Data Darbar in a procession and address a public meeting. Security had been tightened in Lahore especially on the airport ahead of arrival of the PML-N leader. Provincial home department has allowed only hundred party leaders to receive Sharifs at the airport, party sources claimed.
According to sources, bullet-proof cars for Sharifs reached in Lahore last night from Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, the home department said that the authorities have decided to give free hand to Nawaz Sharif but he has not been permitted for holding a public meeting and rally.
Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif and other family members will be transported to home from the airport, a home department statement said. However, thousands of PML-N workers succeeded in arriving airport by crossing the barricades put up by police. On this occasion, the workers raised slogans both in favour of Nawaz Sharif and against the government.
Readers would remember from our prior posts that in August the Supreme Court of Pakistan had ruled that he could, in fact, return to Pakistan despite whatever ‘deal’ he had made with Gen. Musharraf at teh time of his original flight to Saudi Arabia. However, when he did return to the country in September, he was unceremoniously and dramatically deported back to Saudi Arabia with theatrics which rivaled his own attempts not to let Gen. Musharraf land in Pakistan many moons ago.
Now it turns out that he has made yet another ‘deal’ with Gen. Musharraf which has enabled his return.
It is not fully clear what the ‘terms’ of this deal are. Nor what the Musharraf-Nawaz Sharif deal mean
s for the earlier Musharraf-Benazir deal that had enabled her return some weeks back. Nor, in fact, is it clear what what his return (and the fact that now both Benazir and Nawaz Sharif are back in Pakistan) will mean for the future of Pakistan’s politics and the (supposed) forthcoming elections.
In despair, one even wonders if it means anything at all? Or is this just one more drama in the string of topi dramas that have come to define our distraught and fractured polity?
“Come, Watson, come!”
“The game is afoot. Not a word! Into your clothes and come!”
All the thieves are in the den. We have a chance of prevailing and taking them before the judge.
Ooops, *we* are surrounded! There are too many of them. And they changed the judges too.
Stay tuned for the next episode of “The Strange Case of All the Thieves Trying to Save Pakistan”.
Pakistan Zindabad
Pakistan Pa’indabad
@Wasiq,
Well said! Let us ask ourselves with open mind: What has happened between the recent (illegal) deportation of NS and today? Sure, there was the Nov. 15th deadline of some kind. But equally important was Musharraf’s banking on BB to give him legitimacy (yes, the so-called ‘deal’ which BB didn’t waste too much time to get out of). Having failed on all fronts he had no choice but to let Nawaz Sharif back.
In Pakistan, supposedly, a local Thanedar (I guess Sheriff of a police station in equivalance) can cook up all kind of cases/charges and make anyone’s life miserable. I think people in power (whether BB/NS/Musharraf/ISI) have far more powers to frame their opponents.
As someone who welcomed Benazir Bhutto’s negotiations o return to Pakistan I am also happy about Nawaz Sharif’s return. In fact, it is Mohtarma’s reconciliation efforts that have made it possible for Mian Sahib to return.
Now let us have free and fair elections after restoration of constitution, lifting of martial law, restoration of lawful judiciary and freedom of media.
The only people who need to eat their words are the ones who, in their hatred of Benazir Bhutto and PPP, blasted Mohtarma for negotiating (and labelled it a “deal”) while promoting Nawaz Sharif as “principled.”
Politics is all about compromise and there is nothing wrong with compromise as long as the basic objective –restoration of democracy–is upheld.
Also, Pakistan cannot be “saved” by the army or imported Citibankers. Only politicians with popular support –whatever their weaknesses–can bring our nation together.
It is time for return to normal politics in Pakistan.
marke:
I don’t think that Musharraf has that high an IQ. He had to accept NS back because the Saudis had decreed so.
… I think this is a clever move … bring in more of the opposition…. to divide the oppositions vote!!!!