Endgame for Imran Khan govt? Ex-PM Nawaz Sharif hints at returning to Pakistan soon

In a massive development that can mark a decisive shift in Pakistan politics, PML(N) supremo Nawaz Sharif hinted at returning to his country very soon. The third-time Pakistan PM made this announcement on Thursday in an address to his party workers from London, where he has been staying since November 19, 2019, for "medical treatment". On this occasion, he said, "I hope that I will meet all of you in Pakistan soon". 

His arrival in the country is likely to hasten the downfall of the Imran Khan-led government which is facing a huge backlash from across the political spectrum over the surging inflation, increasing debt and purported misgovernance in Pakistan. As Khan's party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has only 156 members in the 342-member National Assembly, the government's survival depends on the support of allies such as MQM-P, BAP and PML(Q). Amid resentment of these alliance partners, it is being speculated that the main opposition parties PML(N) and PPP will join hands to table a no-confidence motion against the ruling dispensation.

Sharif's declaration assumes significance as he accused Pakistan Army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa and ex-ISI chief Faiz Hameed of interfering in the democratic process of the country. According to him, the root cause of Pakistan's problems was the military's refusal to accept the writ of the elected representatives and the existence of a parallel government. While the PML(N) supremo will have to undergo imprisonment on coming back to his homeland, his return to likely to galvanise the opposition to take on the Imran Khan-led party which also recently suffered a shock defeat in the local body polls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a province which it rules. 

Conviction and departure to London

Nawaz Sharif was forced to resign in July 2017 after the Pakistan Supreme Court disqualified him in its Panama Papers verdict. Just a few days before the 2018 election in July, he and his daughter Maryam Nawaz who were leading the campaign for civilian supremacy were convicted by an accountability court in the Avenfield reference case and sentenced to 10 years and 7 years in prison respectively. However, the Islamabad High Court suspended their sentence and granted them bail in September 2018.

Only a few months later, the accountability court convicted the PML(N) supremo in the Al- Azizia Steel Mills Company and Hill Metal Establishment references and awarded him 7 years imprisonment besides a hefty fine. Languishing in Lahore's Kot Lakhpat jail since December 2018, his health started deteriorating. In October 2019, he had to be rushed to the Services Hospital in the city as his platelet count dropped to a critically low level. The Lahore High Court allowed him to travel abroad in November to seek further treatment as his condition remained serious.

This was after he gave an undertaking whereby he promised to return to Pakistan within 4 weeks or whenever he was in a fit condition to travel. After he failed to appear before the Islamabad HC in connection with the appeals against his conviction despite various notices, it declared him a 'proclaimed offender' on December 2, 2020. Since then, the Imran Khan-led government has officially pushed for Nawaz Sharif's repatriation. Recently, the Islamabad HC dismissed his appeals against his conviction in the Avenfield and Al-Azizia references for being fugitive from the law.