Govt can allow Nawaz to return to Pakistan in 24 hours: Rashid

Interior minister says former premier would only have to submit a written request to ministry

ISLAMABAD:

Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid said on Wednesday that former prime minister Nawaz Sharif can be given permission to return to Pakistan in 24 hours provided a written request is made to the ministry.

The minister’s remarks came a day after the anti-government alliance, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), appeared to be in tatters over serious differences on the issue of lawmakers’ resignations from assemblies, which forced it to postpone the scheduled long march against the government.

In a meeting held yesterday to discuss a plan of action for the long march, PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari urged PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif to return to Pakistan from London to reinforce the opposition against the PTI-led government and if necessary the leaders of the PDM would go to jail together.

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, the interior minister said the guarantee of life and death of the former premier cannot be given as that lay with God.

“Nawaz Sharif's passport has expired. We will do whatever we are authorised to do,” he said.

Read PDM a divided house over resignations

Regarding PDM’s postponement of the long march, Rashid said that it was a good decision amid rising coronavirus cases in the country and the upcoming holy month of Ramzan.

“I wanted Ramzan to remain peaceful. My prayers were thankfully listened to,” he said, adding that the country's political temperature has dropped. 

The minister invited the PDM members to come to the National Assembly and take part in the legislation of electoral reforms.

“The PDM cannot defeat [PM] Imran Khan as he is a political heavyweight,” he said. “The opposition had not left any corner of the country where it has not held a rally in six months, while PM Imran postponed his rallies due to rise in pandemic cases,” Rashid added.

Moreover, the interior minister informed that Pakistanis would soon be able to apply for visas to Kuwait - the service had been closed since 2011.

“We will replace officers who have been sitting in the ministry for 18 years on merit,” he added.

Nawaz passport expired

The PML-N supremo's passport expired on February 16, sparking speculation about the possible options available to the three-time former prime minister to extend his stay in the United Kingdom, where he has been residing since November 2019.

The name of the PML-N supreme leader is on the Exit Control List (ECL) and according to the law a person whose name is on the no-fly list cannot apply for the renewal of his passport. However, Nawaz Sharif can return to the country anytime.

In a presser held on December 30, last year, Rashid had said that the PTI government had decided not to renew former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s passport, which was then set to expire on February 16, in an apparent attempt to compel the convicted PML-N leader to return home.

“We have decided to cancel Nawaz Sharif's passport on February 16,” Minister for Interior Sheikh Rashid said in response to a reporter's question.