Govt to push for Nawaz’s deportation again

Federal cabinet decides to write second letter to UK authorities

ISLAMABAD:

The federal government has decided to write another letter to the United Kingdom for deportation of convicted former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who was allowed to fly to London for medical treatment in November 2019 but was later declared an absconder by some courts in Pakistan.

According to sources, Prime Minister Imran Khan in a federal cabinet meeting asked the relevant authorities to take measures for bringing back the PML-N supreme leader and to ensure that he faces the cases pending in various Pakistani courts.

“The process of accountability will continue unabated. The opposition leaders are trying to make state institutions controversial just to avoid the corruption cases lodged against them. The government would, however, not get blackmailed,” the premier was quoted as saying.

Earlier, the cabinet members discussed options for deportation of the PML-N leader and decided to once again write a letter to the UK government. The premier noted that Nawaz Sharif left the country on the pretext of illness but now he will have to return to the country and face legal cases.

Earlier in March, the federal government had sent a letter to the UK authorities asking them to deport former Nawaz Sharif to Pakistan.

The letter was sent a few days after the Punjab government decided not to extend the 8-week bail granted to Nawaz by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Oct 29, 2019 in view of his deteriorating health condition.

The federal cabinet also discussed the opposition parties’ possible anti-government campaign announced on September 20 after an all parties’ conference (APC).

Prime Minister Imran Khan formed a political committee comprising senior cabinet members – Asad Umar, Shafqat Mehmood, Sheikh Rashid, Fawad Chaudhry, Shahzad Akbar and Babar Awan – to develop a strategy to counter any possible protest movement.

In the PPP-hosted APC, the opposition ratcheted up its narrative against alleged rigging in the July 2018 general election and demanded that the powerful establishment should not only refrain itself from interfering in politics but also confine its role as defined in the Constitution.

Through a 26-point resolution and a seven-point action plan issued after the APC in a press conference, the opposition parties put forward their demands, including free, fair, transparent elections without having any role of the armed forces and agencies.