report in The Express Tribune, Dec 31, 2023
Veteran politician and esteemed lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan has made startling predictions regarding PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif, suggesting that the former premier might once again exit the country before the upcoming elections and keep tabs on the results from abroad.
Ahsan shared his insights during an interview with a private news channel on Friday.
Pointing out that the PML-N supremo “is abroad anyways”, Ahsan speculated on the possibility of Nawaz’s absence during the crucial electoral period.
He also commented on JUI-F leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman, implying a potential withdrawal from the electoral race. He described him as drumming the beats of retreat rather than victory, signalling a step back from active participation.
“Two drums that are beaten — either of victory or retreat — Fazl seems to be beating the drum of a retreat”.
Previously, he had labelled Nawaz as a “ladla” (blue-eyed) and accused the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and the interim government of orchestrating efforts to secure a two-thirds majority for Nawaz Sharif in the upcoming general elections.
Nawaz Sharif, who returned to Pakistan on October 21 after a four-year self-imposed exile, expressed disinterest in seeking retribution and emphasised embarking on a new path towards progress.
Commenting on the ongoing confrontations between the PTI and the ECP, Ahsan criticised the election watchdog’s persistence in pursuing the matter further.
He questioned the ECP’s role, suggesting it should focus on conducting elections rather than engaging in disputes. Ahsan specifically highlighted the controversy surrounding PTI’s bat symbol and criticised the ECP’s bias against the party. “Is the ECP conducting elections or contesting them?” he asked.
The lawyer was referring to the ECP’s decision to challenge the Peshawar High Court’s (PHC) ruling that reinstated PTI’s election symbol.
Ahsan underscored the commission’s reluctance to comply with PHC’s directives, including the publication of PTI’s intra-party elections certificate on the ECP’s official website and the restoration of the party’s election symbol.
He elaborated on the repercussions of contesting judgments, saying it would lead to a chain reaction of legal challenges.
He rhetorically questioned the legitimacy of such actions, likening them to a hypothetical scenario where a district judge contests a high court’s decision, prompting a subsequent appeal to the Supreme Court.
“If the high court reverses the decision of the district court, should the district judge go to the Supreme Court to ask why the high court has given a decision against his decision?”
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2451667/nawaz-to-exit-country-before-polls-aitzaz
