Nawaz Sharif, the former leader of Pakistan who lived abroad for nearly four years, has come back to the country. This has caused a lot of excitement in Pakistan because there’s going to be a big election soon.
Sharif was the boss of a party called PML-N and he’s been the Prime Minister three times. At one point, he was removed from power by the army. He got into trouble with the law in 2017 because of corruption claims and couldn’t be in charge anymore.
In 2018, he was given a seven-year prison sentence for corruption, which he said wasn’t true. But he was allowed to go abroad for medical treatment, as long as he came back in four weeks – which he didn’t.
Now, he’s come back to Pakistan. Just a few days ago, a court in Islamabad said he can’t be arrested until he goes to court.”
Things are getting even more serious before the upcoming election, which was already going to be intense. Pakistan, in South Asia, has been in a bit of a mess since another Prime Minister, Imran Khan, was removed from power. He and Nawaz Sharif used to compete against each other.
Lately, people have been protesting a lot in the streets. They’re upset about Khan being kicked out, the high prices, and they’re not happy with the strong military in the country. Some of Khan’s supporters think the military had a hand in getting rid of him, but the military says that’s not true.
Nawaz Sharif has often said that the military played a part in his previous removals from power. The military has had a big say in Pakistan’s affairs since it became independent in 1947.
Before the court decision in 2017 that ended his last term as Prime Minister, he had been kicked out in a takeover in 1999 and removed as Prime Minister by a president who had military support in 1993.
Nawaz Sharif’s younger brother, Shehbaz, was happy to hear that Nawaz got bail. He said on social media that it’s a basic right. He thinks Nawaz Sharif got in trouble based on a made-up story and faced unfair treatment. Shehbaz became Prime Minister in 2022, but his government only lasted until August this year, when a temporary one took over before the big national election next year.
He took charge at a tough time with high prices and a struggling economy. This made the PML-N party less popular. Nawaz Sharif is expected to lead their campaign for the election.
SOURCE:CNN