Nawaz Sharif’s return

PML-N will give him a 'grand welcome', although that may not be enough to fulfil his messiah complex

We finally have a return date for Nawaz Sharif, but it is still up for debate what will be the impact of the former prime minister setting foot in Pakistan after four years of self-imposed exile. From what we know so far, the PML-N will give him a “grand welcome” upon his return, although that may not be enough to fulfil what his critics believe is his messiah complex — he wanted leaders from all the major parties to welcome him back, perhaps taking inspiration from the return to public life of Ayatollah Khomeini or Nelson Mandela.

It will also be interesting to see if Nawaz insists on “respect for the vote”? Unlike 2013 or 2018, there is no question that the PTI — even with Imran Khan behind bars — is the most popular party in most regions of the country. While that still may not translate into a majority, the PML-N will have to overcome the PTI’s enduring popularity and public anger around the Shehbaz-led PDM government’s harsh — albeit necessary — economic decisions, which still seems an uphill task.

Nawaz also has some lingering legal problems of his own, and while PML-N leaders believe he will get some relief from the incoming chief justice of Pakistan, this is more because Justice Qazi Faez Isa has been openly critical of some of the judgement in the Panama Papers case. However, many other legal analysts also criticised that judgement on its merits, while noting that Nawaz still faces some more difficult cases, and Justice Isa has established a reputation for taking decisions based on merit, not convenience, which may not necessarily suit the PML-N supremo.

But the biggest question mark is over what will happen if the PML-N forms the next government. Nawaz is returning to a country where, for the first time since the Pervez Musharraf era, the establishment has stepped out of the shadows to stand front and centre in political decision-making. Will Nawaz be as compliant and deferential as Shehbaz, or will he butt heads with the establishment — which has previously led to the premature end of his premierships at least twice?

Published in The Express Tribune, September 14^th, 2023.

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