FEDERAL Minister and senior leader of PML(N) Javed Latif has confirmed that the party supremo Mian Nawaz Sharif, now in London in connection with his medical treatment, would be returning to the country in September.
Addressing a news conference in Lahore on Monday, he said it is the demand of the people of Pakistan that Nawaz Sharif should come back and he would be doing so next month.
The PML(N) leader, first disqualified under a highly contentious interpretation of the law, was sentenced to seven-year in prison in Al-Azizia Steel Mills Reference and eleven-year sentence in Avenfield Properties Reference in 2018.
Later, he departed for London in November 2019 after the Lahore High Court suspended his sentence and allowed him to proceed abroad for medical treatment.
He has been staying in London since then and several attempts made by the PTI Government to bring him back could not succeed because of legal and political issues involved.
Strangely enough, PTI, which wanted him back in the country, is now upset over prospects of his return as during his address to a public meeting a few days back Imran Khan claimed that a conspiracy was being hatched to disqualify him and bring Nawaz Sharif back.
As things stand today, Nawaz will have to go back to jail on his return because of his conviction that still stands but there is a demand from party workers, supporters and even some coalition partners that he should be in Pakistan to lead the party in the next general election.
There are also justifiable demands that cases against Nawaz were politically motivated and he was disqualified and sentenced on weaker grounds.
There is also a growing realization that mainstream political parties and national leaders must not be sidelined and all should get a level playing field during elections, allowing people to make a choice.
However, nothing can be said with certainty in the treacherous political scenario of the country where things are grossly manipulated by different players and stakeholders.
Therefore, much depends on what the coalition government plans to do and the nature of reaction by the opposition as well as the judiciary in coming weeks.
Some contentious issues might crystallize when the higher judiciary would hear disqualification cases against former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
