Despite the statement made by Shehbaz Sharif, PPP leader Syed Khursheed Shah has said that he does not see PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif returning to Pakistan in October.

On Friday, after meeting his brother in London, Shehbaz had said that after consultations with the party’s senior leadership, it had been decided that Nawaz “will return to Pakistan in October”.

Shehbaz made the statement in response to a question about media reports suggesting that Nawaz would return to Pakistan in mid-October. However, in an interview with a private television channel earlier this month, Shehbaz had said Nawaz would return to Pakistan in September while other senior N-leaguers suggested the same.

Informed sources told Dawn that though the elder Sharif was eager to return to Pakistan ahead of the elections, there was still no clear date set.

Party insiders told Dawn that Nawaz’s return date was still up in the air, as key developments back home would determine his return to the country, including the retirement of Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial, the status of Nawaz’s pending appeals and a date for elections.

The party leadership fears that Nawaz may be incarcerated upon return, as he has been declared an absconder by the courts, and his appeals are still pending.

Speaking with DawnNewsTV on Saturday regarding Nawaz’s homecoming, Shah said, “Nawaz Sharif has no plan to come [to Pakistan] right now. I don’t think so.”

The PPP leader added, “His health is not good, he might not come.”

When the host cited Shehbaz’s recent statement, the former water minister asserted, “Indeed, he (Shehbaz) might have said so but I say that he is not well and even at the last moment, he can get unwell.”

Nawaz has been residing in the United Kingdom since November 2019, when he went there for medical treatment following his conviction in a corruption case.

He has not returned since and faces multiple cases in Pakistan. He was deemed an absconder the following February. Later in 2020, courts declared him as a proclaimed offender.

Media reports have been speculating since October last year that Nawaz is to return soon. His daughter and PML-N Vice Organiser Maryam Nawaz stated the same in a public address in January this year.

Shah says power prices can be reduced

Commenting on countrywide protests spurred by inflated electricity bills, Shah rued that the previous coalition government could have reduced power prices by Rs3-4 per unit.

A day earlier, protests were held in cities across the country due to exorbitant electricity bills on the back of a significant increase in the national average tariff, prompting Interim Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar to summon an emergency meeting.

Shah said that even now, the interim government could decrease public resentment by cutting down power prices by Rs10-15 per unit.

“Even right now, if Rs10-15 are reduced … I think relief can be provided to the people,” he said.

When asked if he thought it was possible to do so as the suggested decrease was quite large, the former minister replied, “Yes, it can happen.”