Nawaz Sharif returns to London, gears up for meetings with party leaders

LONDON: Former Prime Minister (PM) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Supremo Mian Nawaz Sharif has returned to London on Friday.

According to sources, the three-time premier is scheduled to depart for Pakistan the next month.

The sources told HUM News that Nawaz will hold meetings with multiple political figures including Shehbaz Sharif and other party members during his stay in London.

Earlier in June, Nawaz Sharif had departed for Dubai on June 24, and also embarked on trips to three countries including Saudi Arabia and Europe.

Read More: Shehbaz: Nawaz Sharif will return to Pakistan next month

Nawaz Sharif in exile

Nawaz Sharif, 73, was disqualified in 2017 by the Supreme Court (SC) of Pakistan from the post of the country’s Prime Minister while in 2018, he was declared ineligible to hold public office for life in Panama papers case verdict.

The three-time former PM has been living in self-imposed exile in the United Kingdom since November 2019.

From the looks of it, the Election Act Amendment Bill will not only pave way for Nawaz’s return to the country, but also active politics at a juncture when the government is mulling announcing the next general elections in the country.

Formation of Legal Team

In June, the outgoing PM Shehbaz Sharif had constituted a legal team to finalise nitty-gritty details for the return of Nawaz Sharif from London to Pakistan.

As per the sources, the legal team, comprising law minister and other lawyers, was responsible for  taking up cases that led to the Nawaz’s disqualification and address the legal hindrances in the way of his return to the country.

Read More: Nawaz Sharif to face law upon return: PM Shehbaz

The development came after the National Assembly (NA) passed a bill, in June, to amend the Election Act 2017 that limited the disqualification of lawmakers to five years under the Article 62 (1)(f) instead of a lifetime.

The Election Act Amendment Bill has also enabled the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to announce the schedule for general elections without consulting the president.

Nawaz Sharif to lead electoral campaign

Shehbaz Sharif, during his interview with Hamid Mir on Thursday, said that he intended to visit London to finalise arrangements with Nawaz Sharif for his return once the caretaker government assumed the charge.

During the interview, when Shehbaz was asked about potential challenges posed by the caretaker government upon Nawaz’s return, Shehbaz said, “He will face the law.”

Shehbaz also said that Nawaz Sahrif would lead the PML-N’s electoral campaign and could potentially become prime minister for the fourth time if the party secures victory in the elections. The elections might be postponed due to the pending notification of the most recent census results.

Nawaz’s expected comeback would coincide with the retirement of Chief Justice of Pakistan, Umar Ata Bandial, a figure PML-N leaders have identified as an obstacle to Nawaz’s reentry.