• Former PM says New Delhi & Islamabad will eventually talk about difficult issues, but Indian team should come to Pakistan for Champions Trophy
• Blames Imran Khan for reneging on ‘commitment to work together’, not doing anything for democracy
• Says rollback of democratic freedoms much worse under PTI
• Hints at plans to embark on a mission to ‘fix things and organise PML-N’

BEFORE he was due to return to Pakistan after several weeks overseas, PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif sat down with Dawn for a brief chat. At a cafe in the Four Seasons Hotel in London’s Park Lane, tea was had but none was spilled.

The 74-year-old three-time former prime minister — who was far more vocal and provocative during his days of opposition and exile — appeared more guarded and measured in our interaction on Friday. In his own words, he had “held himself back”.

“I don’t want to say something that would rock the boat or create any instability. That is the last thing I want for the country,” he told me during our conversation.

It was evident that he had a lot more to say than he let on, but in keeping with the more cautious position he has assumed since his return to Pakistan after four years of self-imposed exile in the UK, he was choosing his words wisely.

India-Pakistan relations

During his recent trip, Nawaz had spoken about the Indian cricket team’s decision not to play its Pakistan fixtures in next year’s ICC Champions Trophy. So, does he believe in cricket diplomacy between India and Pakistan?

“The subject of India-Pakistan relations is unique. Any honest answer will be perceived as hurtful to one side or the other,” he said, acknowledging the tricky nature of the subject.

“I have to show maturity and [avoid] provocative statements. As the senior-most statesman in the region… I don’t want any misunderstandings.”

When pushed to talk about India’s lukewarm response to his congratulatory message to Naren­dra Modi upon his re-election, Nawaz said: “Both our countries are neighbours and will be forever. We should have good relations.”

“When it comes to problems, we should sit down and talk to each other and discuss things amicably. If you have good relations with any country, then it is easy to discuss problems with. But if you are far away from each other, you cannot discuss problems.”

“I have faith that a time will come when India and Pakistan will talk about the most difficult issues. The first step towards this is to have confidence-building measures,” he said, signalling that cricket was one such realm where a thaw was possible.

“This is why I said their cricket team should come to Pakistan. If it was a situation where we had to play in India, I would want Pakistan to be the first team to go there. So, the Indian team should visit Pakistan. It will improve the relationship,” he said.

But when pressed on India’s longstanding allegations against Pakistan, which include accusations of sponsoring ‘terrorism’ across the border, he simply replied, “We ourselves are victims of terrorism”.

Health of democracy

To questions about the erosion of democratic norms in recent years, specifically with regards to political arrests, harassment of protesters and curbs on press and internet freedoms, Nawaz placed the blame squarely on his arch-rival.

“Whether you bring Imran Khan in this question or not, he is the root cause. [He] had the biggest opportunity to promote and strengthen democracy, when I was PM and he was opposition leader, but he did not understand democracy, or do anything to strengthen it.”

“I don’t remember seeing him in the assembly more than once or twice. He spent his time in dharnas outside parliament, his party members resigned, he started a campaign against us with that ‘35 puncture’ case, which was thrown out by [then-CJP] Nasirul Mulk. He partnered with Maulana Tahirul Qadri, of all people. Is that democracy?” he asked.

When nudged on the rollback of democratic freedoms under the incumbent gover­n­ment, he said “much worse happened under Imran Khan’s government”.

“I spent my time strengthening democracy. I went to Imran Khan’s house after we won elections and said ‘Let us sit together and serve the people of Pakistan’. He had told me he would do whatever is necessary for that — but a few days later he announced his dharna.”

“This is on him. We would have been working together today if he had listened to me when I went to his house,” Nawaz lamented.

Recalling that his party did not need Imran’s support at all after the 2013 elections, Nawaz said he had extended an olive branch to the PTI leader “for the sake of the country and for democracy”.

“If he had won the election fair and square, and had worked on these ideals, we would have been serving together. But he did not listen, and we suffered,” he concluded.

The party president

When asked why he didn’t become prime minister after the February elections, Nawaz said that his rationale had been clear long before the election.

“If I don’t get a majority I will not be a candidate for prime minister. This was no secret…,” he said, adding that when he saw the result of the election, “I thought, no”.

Was it true that he was asked not to take the position? At this, Nawaz laughs. “Do you really believe that? It’s not true at all.”

So how did he feel about the election result? Was it a major setback? Nawaz avoided delving into personal feelings, but said the results were “below my expectations”.

So, what does the future hold for the former prime minister, who has once again become president of his party, at a time when it has seemingly lost its political capital and has to navigate a challenging political landscape?

“I can’t say what the future holds. Now I am focused on organising my party, on fixing things. I will be visiting various places to strengthen the party. I hope things improve and that people see what we can and have delivered,” he concluded.

Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2024