Shahbaz Sharif family deported to Saudi Arabia

Shahbaz Sharif family deported to Saudi Arabia 

--Sheikh Rashid denied deporting Shahbaz family

 

 

 

ISLAMABAD, Indianz Post: The family of Shahbaz Sharif, former Chief Minister Punjab of Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) has been deported to Saudi Arabia through Royal Saudi Airline’s flight at 6:00 p.m. here Tuesday.

 

Those deported from Islamabad International Airport include Nusrat Shahbaz, her two daughters, Rabia and Javairia and a servant Hajra.

 

Both the sons of former Chief Minister of Punjab, Hamza Shahbaz and Suleman Shahbaz  saw off their mother and sisters who were onboard at SV-721, Royal Saudi Ariline that left Islamabad at 6:00 p.m.

 

“They are being brought to Islamabad for deportation following rejection of their petition in the Lahore High Court,” PML (N) Spokesman Siddique-ul-Farooque said. They were arrested from their Model Town house in Lahore after their lawyer Ashtar Ausaf failed to appear in the court.

 

PML (N) leaders believe Ausaf was either forcibly stopped or detained to prevent him appear in the court. He had filed a petition in the LHC requesting the court to depute a bailiff for recovery of the detainees. His submission was that that detained members of Sharif family are Pakistani citizens having valid national identity cards and passports and as such have the legal right to stay in Pakistan.

 

Nusrat Shahbaz, wife of Shahbaz Sharif and her children have been deported to Saudi Arabia through the Royal Airline flight, which departs at 6 p.m. (PST), amidst speculations that deportation was ordered following the government failed to secure guarantees from visiting family that Sharifs will not take part in Pakistani politics.

 

As Farooque himself conceded, Hamza, son of Shahbaz Sharif and Ashtar Ausaf, the family lawyer were under tremendous pressure. However, he minced words when asked what guarantees, the government sought from Sharif family while they were in Pakistan.

 

“The government has not deported the Shahbaz family but Hamza Shahbaz himself got visas of his family members from Saudi Embassy for their travel to Saudi Arabia,” Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said.

 

According to report, which could not be confirmed, thanks to apathy of the government officials, Hamza recently had a meeting with Prime Minister Jamali and it was after this meeting that the family was allowed to stay back in Pakistan. But as some political observers believe that the deportation was finally ordered after things failed to move in a desired direction.

 

A close aide of Nawaz Sharif and PML (N) Vice President Syed Zafar Ali Shah was however reluctant to concede that such a meeting was taken place. “They are political people and those who really matter are living in exile. I don’t think such a meeting would have taken place. There is also no possibility of the government, striking a deal with the family members of Shahbaz Sharif and Nawaz Sharif”.

 

Sharif family, which arrived here sometime in April last, was living in Pakistan on an extension granted to them just recently.

 

“But this is an irony that the valid citizens of Pakistan are being denied their fundamental right to stay in their country,” Shah said adding that this victimization must come to an end.

 

One of a PML (N) leader said on condition of anonymity that Sharif family would be allowed to stay in Pakistan provided both Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif reach an agreement that they would not take part in Pakistani politics. In that case, even Shahbaz Sharif would also be allowed to return to Pakistan.

 

The agreement, which led to deportation of Nawaz Sharif and his family in December 2000 to Saudi Arabia, still remains a mystery as neither General Musharraf nor any member of the former Prime Minister ever tried to disclose contents of the accord.

 

However, General Musharraf had once declared in a press conference that either he or Sharifs would stay in Pakistan saying that it will be a wishful thinking on part of Sharifs if they think they can return to the country.

 

Musharraf and his confidants have all along been saying that the Sharifs were sent in exile under an agreement between governments of Pakistan and Saudi Arabia but none of them disclosed so far what the agreement was all about.

 

Musharraf government had also reportedly send emissaries including owner of Nawai-Waqt Group of newspapers, who was very close to Nawaz Sharif to Saudi Arabia to convince him striking a deal with the government but could not succeed. However, the government had strongly denied sending the emissaries.

 

It is almost certain that the opposition, which had moved no-trust motion against Speaker National Assembly last week, will now try to create more problems for the government especially after deportation of Sharif family. However, what exactly will be their strategy is yet to be known.