He was ousted by military chief General Pervez Musharraf in a bloodless coup in October 1999 and exiled to Saudi Arabia a year later.
Sharif tried to return home in September, but was sent back to Saudi Arabia within hours of his arrival.
But this time Musharraf, who imposed emergency rule on November 3, reluctantly agreed to allow him back.
Sharif - the latest political heavyweight to join Pakistan’s deepening power struggle - is due to lead his Muslim party in the country’s elections on January 8.
"We want democracy and nothing else," he told the BBC. "I am here to play my role and also make my own efforts to rid the country of dictatorship."
In a reminder that Pakistan remains under emergency rule, security forces rounded up some Sharif activists and attempted to seal off the airport.
But they failed to prevent jubilant crowds pushing past barriers placed across approach roads.
Several hundred people swarmed into the terminal, waving the green flags of Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-N party.
They shouted slogans including “Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif” and “Go, Musharraf, go!”
Hundreds more gathered outside the airport fence. Loudspeakers mounted on trucks blared out patriotic songs.
آج سے سات سال پہلے جتنی سختی سے جنرل پرویز مشرف نے اپنے پرانے باس کو ملک بدر کر کے سعودی عرب بھیجا تھا اب سعودی حکومت اتنی ہی سختی سے ان کو واپس بھیجنے پر مصر نظر آتی ہے۔
نواز شریف کی واپسی کے فیصلے نے جنرل مشرف کے سیاسی مستقبل پر لگے سوالیہ نشان مزید نمایاں کر دیے ہیں۔
“What am I supposed to talk to him about? He would have to accept all the opposition’s demands first,” Sharif said.
“Once he does all that I, the opposition that is, can sit across a table from him, but the opposition has to decide.”
Sharif said he had rebuffed several approaches to set up a meeting with Musharraf in Saudi Arabia in the past.
“Thrice he tried to contact me, approach me in the past two months, saying that he wants to come here in Jeddah. I regretted it, I said no, it will not serve any purpose,” he said.
You seem to be happy about a villains plan on bringing in Democracy and assassinate the King, whereas you lacked of some enthusiasm during another villains uprise against the same King. HOw funny.
That is not a good argument. he will argue that he was PM when he was sent to jail and his term as PM has to be completed first
Nope, he lost his job to Musharraf, Musharraf is still in power, he was sent to jail, his crimes got "proven" in courts and got verdict of 21 years according to some people here but then got bailed out by Saudis. So if he is back in Pakistan he should complete his 21 years before coming out of jail.
Nawaz's coming is not a good omen for the na-pak generals and extremist Chaudhrys of Q-league. Your masters could not persuade their Saudi masters to keep Nawaz there. This is why he is here.
Nope, he lost his job to Musharraf, Musharraf is still in power, he was sent to jail, his crimes got "proven" in courts and got verdict of 21 years according to some people here but then got bailed out by Saudis. So if he is back in Pakistan he should complete his 21 years before coming out of jail.
I have no preferences about who ruled/rules in Pakistan. Whoever it is, as long as they stop the past cross border jihad, they can do whatever else they want. I mean, you are the Pakistani citizen, not me. So if you want Nawas in jail, I have no great qualms.
However, how can you say he 'lost his job' to Musharaf? It was a coup at the point of a gun. Nawas had won the popular election and had every right to complete his term. If he had to be removed mid-term, the constitutional and legal way is to work through the parliamentary system. I don't know whether you guys call it impeachment (as in USA) or 'No Confidence vote' (as we call it in India).
Supporting a coup which is a unilateral suspension of rule of law is what set the precedent, in my opinion, to all the subsequent unilateral self-preservation acts. You cannot have one and not the other!
Oh well. This is what the people wanted and this is what they got. That is the right of the Pakistani people and the whole world has to respect it and accept it.
Now watch as the two parties blow up each other's pro-news agencies, daily protests and riots against each other, anarchy forces foreigners to move their businesses & assets into neighbouring countries, laws go back to the obsolete decade of the 1970s, people start praying for an another bloodless military coup, peace process with Hindustan goes down the toilet, the KSE-100 index goes back to 1,200 points from the current t 13,732 points, the US & EU start imposing sanctions on Pakistan for human rights abuses, the country performs the ritual of hand-in-cap to the Arabs, all the development projects are put on hold, 85% of GDP ends up on debt repayment... .
This is what the people wanted and it is the right of the Pakistani people.
May Allah Almighty bless and protect the people of Pakistan.
However, how can you say he 'lost his job' to Musharaf? It was a coup at the point of a gun. Nawas had won the popular election and had every right to complete his term. If he had to be removed mid-term, the constitutional and legal way is to work through the parliamentary system. I don't know whether you guys call it impeachment (as in USA) or 'No Confidence vote' (as we call it in India).
First of all I was against the coup. Secondly Musharraf threw him out of government because Nawaz Sharif was corrupt, criminal and brought Pakistan to bankruptcy and all that (charges filed by Musharraf in courts and probably "proved" as well).
Now Musharraf is still in power, why is he letting Nawaz Sharif stay out of jail? The point is that Musharraf is going to use him as another pawn in his game, first he tried to use him as negotiating stock against Benazir, when Benazir didn't agree on some of his terms Musharraf has brought back Nawaz Sharif. Now the opposition will stay divided giving boost to PML-Q chances (the current boot licker party).
Conclusion: Musharraf is as corrupt as Benazir, Nawaz Sharif and is using them to stay in power.
Now the opposition will stay divided giving boost to PML-Q chances (the current boot licker party).
if anything, BT will make pml-q obsolete. it will be a fight between pml-n and ppp for the premier seat, with musharaf as president. all is going according to plan.
