Shehbaz will now return tomorrow

Minister says medical check-up, other personal engagements reason for delayed return

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who was supposed to return to Pakistan on Thursday, will now arrive on Sunday.

According to Punjab government officials, Shehbaz will leave London on Saturday evening to arrive in Pakistan on Sunday morning.

Provincial Minister Zaeem Qadri told The Express Tribune that Shehbaz, a cancer survivor, needed to undergo routine medical check-ups. He said the check-up and other personal engagements were the reason for his delayed return.

Answering a question, Qadri said the Punjab chief minister was likely to meet Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, who had also left for a visit to the UK.

Initially Shehbaz was to return on Thursday – the day the ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif landed back.

After attending court proceedings, the elder Sharif has returned to his Jati Umra residence near Lahore. He was accompanied by her daughter Maryam Nawaz in a special flight to Lahore.

Sources have hinted at another quick trip by Sharif to London for attending to his wife Kulsoom Nawaz who is undergo a third round of chemotherapy, while adding that he will be present for all court proceedings.

Qadri, however, said that nothing had been confirmed yet as to the Sharif’s another trip to London. He said the ousted PM would hold meetings with party leaders in Lahore starting from Saturday but there were no plans of any public appearances.