What next for Nawaz?

Published October 11, 2022

FORMER PM Nawaz Sharif wants to return home to lead his party in the next elections. The only obstacles stopping him from coming back are his 2018 conviction and lifetime disqualification by the Supreme Court in an ‘assets beyond means’ case.

His prerecorded, ‘heart-to-heart’ interview aired on Sunday focused mostly on the pain he and his family had to go through during his days in jail along with his daughter while his wife lay on her deathbed in London.

Yet the underlying message is clear: the controversial judgement against him is flawed, politically motivated and ‘revenge-based’, and meant to banish him from politics forever. Beyond that, he wants the judges to right the wrong done to him and invalidate his conviction, and consequently, lifelong disqualification. None of what he has stated in the interview is new.

It is just a reiteration of what the former prime minister and his party have been saying ever since he was indicted in the Panama Papers case while still in office.

The interview’s contents also confirm that the narrative he and his party are trying to build in the changed political environment carries only mild references to the role of the establishment in his ouster and conviction.

With his party leading the coalition at the centre and Imran Khan out of favour with the establishment, it was but expected. Still, the question remains: will the new narrative work in Mr Sharif’s favour despite a change in the PML-N’s fortunes, and will the judges reverse his conviction? Maryam Nawaz’s acquittal in the Avenfield case and the Supreme Court chief justice’s remarks against lifelong disqualification are hopeful signs for Mr Sharif.

Yet no matter how strong his narrative, it won’t be easy for him to get relief as there is a perception that some decisions in cases involving politicians seem to have been person-specific. If the PML-N supremo wants to come back, he shouldn’t wait for his conviction to be reversed. His presence in the country will help him more than any narrative he builds abroad.

Published in Dawn, October 11th, 2022

Opinion

Editorial

Window dressing
Updated 17 Jun, 2025

Window dressing

Meanwhile, the provinces lack the resources and expertise to implement adaptation measures effectively.
No revenue effort
17 Jun, 2025

No revenue effort

WITH the ruling PML-N’s next budget unfolding large infrastructure schemes, and expenditure focusing on service...
Pomp and circumstance
17 Jun, 2025

Pomp and circumstance

THE sight of columns of tanks rolling down a boulevard, accompanied by troops goose-stepping in lockstep, was a...
Close the gap
Updated 16 Jun, 2025

Close the gap

Our imbalanced scorecard in the main shows that power development and prosperity reflect the shallowness of political claims.
Fiscal malfeasance
16 Jun, 2025

Fiscal malfeasance

IT is galling that, even in these times of economic distress, when hardship has pushed millions of ordinary...
Rochdale conviction
16 Jun, 2025

Rochdale conviction

THE recent conviction of seven men in the Rochdale grooming gang case is a hard-won moment of justice. The men, ...