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Nawaz Sharief to relocate to London

Sanjay Suri
India Abroad Correspondent in London

Former prime minister Nawaz Sharief of Pakistan is due to leave Saudi Arabia for Britain and re-launch his political career later this year, according to a well-placed Pakistani source.

Sharief is straining to return to politics to oppose the regime of General Pervez Musharraf, according to the source.

Sharief, who was exiled to Saudi Arabia by the general, is barred from engaging in any political activity while in Saudi Arabia.

He has been gagged to the extent that he has been cut off from exposure in the media. His movements and his meetings with any other political leaders have been restricted. Sharief is increasingly frustrated also that his telephone lines are tapped, according to this source.

The bar on engaging in any political activity was made a condition of Sharief's exile to Saudi Arabia. The exile was offered to Sharief as an alternative to death in Pakistan.

"But there is nothing in law to say that he will never engage in any political activity for the rest of his life," the highly placed source told rediff.com. "Nawaz Sharief is very keen to return to politics."

Sharief is likely to leave Saudi Arabia for London "within three or four months", according to the source. He already has a base in London, though this was one of the many controversies that led to his ouster.

Sharief's family owns houses in London's fashionable Mayfair district. It also has extensive financial interests in London. His son Hasan Sharief lives in London and has been campaigning from here for his father's freedom.

Sharief's return to London will make the British capital a greater hotbed for Pakistani political activity than Islamabad. His return will mean that the leaders of all of Pakistan's three biggest political parties will be operating out of London.

Benazir Bhutto is based currently in London though she travels often to Dubai. The Muttahida Quami Movement, a party of Mohajirs [the name given to Muslims who migrated to Pakistan from India after Partition] has had its headquarters in London for 15 years since its leader Altaf Hussain fled Pakistan. Sharief's return is set to complete the Pakistani political picture here.

The MQM runs its secretariat formally out of London. The Pakistan People's Party led by Bhutto has an extensive network across Britain with units in all towns with a significant Pakistani population. So does the Pakistan Muslim League led by Sharief.

A close aide of Bhutto in London told rediff.com on Thursday that the prime aim of the Pakistani parties would be to work for the restoration of democracy in Pakistan.

That is likely to follow the strong movement launched by Pakistanis in Britain earlier against the late General Zia-ul-Haq under the Movement for the Restoration of Democracy.

Gen Musharraf has promised the resumption of a political process in Pakistan, but with no date on offer for a general election. He has also said that Sharief and Bhutto will not be allowed to contest any elections.

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