IT is quite unpleasant to a see a personal favourite suffering a setback on health grounds when she had been all poised to lead yet another attempt at ensuring her family’s existence and their continued participation in power politics. This could well turn out to be a significant development, a twist which could define the tone of exchange on the NA-120 battlefront. A Kulsoom Nawaz under treatment for throat cancer could bring greater sobriety to the vote scheduled for Sept 17.

There were initially fears of matters turning into a classic mudslinging match given the timing immediately after the disqualification of Mian Nawaz Sharif. The disqualification saw frayed tempers on both sides of the political divide; even the fielding of women from the two main contesting parties, the PML-N and PTI, got a mixed reception.

There were those who quickly recalled how women candidates in the field had drawn the worst of election campaigners in the past. But mercifully, the dominating view was that the presence in the contest of a senior national-level PTI leader, who had a long professional career as a doctor behind her, and a person as prominent as the wife of a three-time prime minister on the other end would ensure adherence to a code of conduct based on decency even amid the intense lobbying for votes. The news that Mrs Kulsoom Nawaz is not well and under treatment away from home will encourage calls for restraint.

One immediate reaction to the news of Mrs Kulsoom Nawaz’s illness was that it provided Mian Sahib with a reason to suspend political activities in Pakistan.

The Sharifs have had problems with their health in recent years, London acting as a frequent destination for medical reasons. Each time a Sharif family member has been away for medical consultation there has been great mystery attached to it. Routinely, there have been predictions of how the doctor is soon going to declare someone unfit for further participation in politics and (there never being a dearth of wishful well-wishers of this country) how the forced termination of a political career is going to be the remedy that Pakistan had been long waiting for.

The Sharifs have defied these desired results prepared in labs away from their little world where they hid their private sufferings from the public. They have surprised those who had written them off on medical grounds. They have, quite remarkably, been able to protect their privacy with silence. So much so that many were slightly taken aback by the latest instance in which the Sharif family members appeared to share the news about Mrs Kulsoom Nawaz’s ailment with the people promptly.

How could they let the people know so abruptly when this could have an adverse effect on the former first lady’s chances in the polls, some asked. Others quickly put the ‘leak’ down to the ‘confusion’ in the Sharif camp which, post-disqualification, is said to be no more very sure about which news to allow out and which stories to try and sit on.

A saner explanation was that this was not something which could be kept concealed considering the campaign expectations of Mrs Kulsoom Nawaz. A delayed display of it could prove costly for the PML-N, especially post-disqualification when people ‘expect’ the party to be upfront and transparent in its decisions. Discovering her ailment later on could give the impression that the party was (still) keeping its supporters in the dark about certain matters.

The public side of it apart, in the context of the family’s own battles, fate could not have chosen a more dramatic moment to come up with this revelation — that is, presuming that there was no prior suspicion about the ailment even within the family, this was the first time everyone was hearing about it afflicting Mrs Kulsoom Nawaz.

These could be the most trying times for the Sharifs in history. According to one popular account, the sole Sharif family concern right now is survival. There are rumours about an impending implosion which could separate the Sharifs marked as ‘used’ and ‘useless’ from the Sharifs who could still be employed in serving politics and the political interests of Pakistan. The latest turn, on account of the doctor’s chit from London, could have an impact on shaping attitudes in the family, within the party which is pretty much a family affair, and beyond.

This was bound to be seen as an omen of some kind. What did this sign mean? When family is party and party is family not even the most superstitious could take it as a divine signal asking the Sharifs to employ people from outside the family in crucial resistance battles. Mrs Kulsoom Nawaz, was of course, the best choice to retain NA-120 for the household unless Shahbaz Sharif or Maryam Nawaz could realistically be fielded in the constituency. Then what other message could the timing of this ailment be associated with?

One immediate reaction to the news of Mrs Kulsoom Nawaz’s illness was that it provided Mian Sahib with a reason to suspend political activities in Pakistan and leave for England for a longish period to be with his ailing wife. The route provided him an escape from his current state of ‘inactivity’ — one perception being that Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif was struggling desperately for direction post-disqualification.

The possibility continues to be discussed in Lahore; the intensity of the debate varies. There has since been movement within the Nawaz camp. An effort is said to be in preparation to amend laws that had justified Mr Nawaz Sharif’s dismissal from power for a third time. But not too many are hopeful that the idea has a future in a country where political groups are increasingly collecting against the PML-N, indicating through their statements that this was the most patriotic thing to do in Pakistan right now.

The amendment — even if it were to be granted that the PML-N really meant to earnestly go for the change — seems so out of reach in the circumstances. The scenarios which discuss various Nawaz Sharif exit options seem more relevant. It’s tough. Between a wife who promises to win it for him and one who appears to be saying that she has had too much of it.

The writer is Dawn’s resident editor in Lahore.

Published in Dawn, August 25th, 2017