Former Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif returns home after four years in self-imposed exile in UK

Pakistans former prime minister Nawaz Sharif returned home on Saturday on a special flight after a fouryear selfimposed exile in the UK to head his party and try to secure a record fourth term in the general elections expected to be held in JanuaryWearing a light blue kurta pyjama a maroon muffler and a black coat the 73yearold Pakistan Muslim LeagueNawaz PMLN supremo flew in from Dubai to Islamabad on the UmeedePakistan chartered plane at around 130 pm local timeOn his arrival Sharifs legal team met him and took his signature on some legal documents to be submitted to the Islamabad High Court as part of the bail process approved by the court on October 19Authorities at the airport also took his biometrics The PMLN supremos legal team includes former law minister Azam TararAfter staying an hour or so in Islamabad he will leave for Lahore to address a rally at MinarePakistanHis party has been trying to paint his homecoming as a hope for Pakistan No call was given for workers to welcome him at the airport but dozens of supporters have reached the Islamabad airportAbout 150 PMLN supporters who were onboard on the special flight kept on chanting slogans throughout the flightSharif was calm during the flight and apparently read the notes for his address in Lahore in the eveningSpeaking to reporters at Dubai airport the threetime former prime minister deplored the very chaotic situation in Pakistan and expressed confidence that his party was competent to take the cashstrapped country out of the present crisisIm going back to Pakistan after four years today Sharif said When I was leaving Pakistan and going abroad I had no feeling of happiness but today I am happyThe ousted premier added that it would have been very good if the situation of the country was better today as compared to 2017I get very worried and disappointed seeing the situation in the country The country that had to move forward is going backwards now economically and unitywiseTerming the situation as iquestworrisomeiquest Sharif said there was still hope and we should not let it slip from our hands as we are capable of fixing it because we spoiled it ourselvesHe said the country had to get back on its feet as nobody would lift us upWhen I remember Pakistan back then I get hurt we had said goodbye to the International Monetary Fund electricity was cheap the rupee was stable there was employment roti cost Rs 4 a poor familys child went to school and medicines were also cheapSharif said only the Election Commission of Pakistan ECP can decide when polls will be held adding that it was the only competent authority and a fair election commissionThe ECP is yet to fix a date for the elections but in the past said that polls would be held by January endWhatever date the ECP announces everyone will abide by it My priority is whatever the ECP says Pakistan has a fair ECP today and I feel it will make the best decision with regards to the electionLamenting the treatment meted out to him in the past he said he was the person who had gone through 150 court hearingsNot just me but also my daughter She even got a clean chit She had to get it She didnt have a position during my government not even an officeHe said fake cases were not just filed against his family including former prime minister and his brother Shehbaz Sharif but also exinterior minister Rana Sanaullah Khan and PMLN leader Hanif AbbasiI even said before leaving that I leave everything to Allah God and I still continue doing thatHe smirked and said We are the May 28 ones when asked about the May 9 violence allegedly carried out by his successor Imran Khans partyPakistan conducted nuclear tests on May 28 1998 under the leadership of the then prime minister SharifPMLN President and his brother Shehbaz said that his leader will be among the people and is back to unite the nation not to divide it furtherMy leader Nawaz Sharif will be among you today InshaAllah He is coming back to unite this nation not to divide it further He is coming back to spread love among his people not hatred He is coming back to help you become a productive citizen not ammunition for any party or group He is coming back to put Pakistan back on track he posted on XSharifs daughter Maryam said that it was the biggest day of her lifeThe pain and suffering that Nawaz Sharif endured in the last 24 years are hardly comparable and there are some wounds that will never heal but the amount of times Nawaz Sharif has risen is probably not the same for anyone else Maryam said in a post on XSharif left for London in Noveshymshyber 2019 on medical grounds after a higher court granted him bail for four weeks By that time he had served half of his sevenyear jail term in the AlAzizia corruption caseDuring the four years since then Sharif was declared a proclaimed offender in AlAzizia and Avenfield corruption cases for his continuous absence from the proceedings on appeals against the sentencesThe Islamabad High Court on Thursday granted him protective bail until October 24 in both cases after the National Accountability Bureau Pakistans anticorruption agency did not oppose the petitions filed by himHe stepped down as Pakistans prime minister in 2017 after he was disqualified for life from holding public office by the Supreme Court after a probe into his familys wealth following the 2016 Panama Papers leakSharif has consistently denied any wrongdoing and termed it as a politically motivated caseThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever