Choppy waters
Nawaz Sharif’s interview to Dawn and his subsequent statements
defending and justifying his remarks regarding the Mumbai attacks of 2008 have
had unforeseen consequences. On the one hand, there are intriguing glimmers of
rifts within the ranks of the PML-N, while those within the party who are sceptical
of the wisdom of his remarks that have been interpreted by some as criticism of
the establishment and by others as anti-patriotic (particularly after the
Indian media went to town after the interview, painting Nawaz Sharif’s remarks
as an ‘admission’ that Pakistan was behind the Mumbai carnage) see the whole
episode as having affected the PML-N’s prospects in the upcoming elections. One
uncomfortable gulf appears to have opened up between Nawaz and younger brother
and current party head Shahbaz Sharif, with the latter attempting the difficult
act of balancing his pragmatic approach to keeping the boat steady in the run
up to the polls with family and political ties and the uncontested reality that
it is Nawaz who commands the PML-N vote. Nawaz Sharif has had to face
accusations from disparate quarters of putting self before the interests of the
party, the elections, the democratic system and the country. Quite a charge
sheet. There have even been voices heard that Nawaz Sharif’s unwise utterings
could lead to Pakistan being put on the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF’s)
black list for terrorist financing. The US too has jumped into the fray through
a subtly worded message of ‘do more’. Nawaz Sharif’s considerations aside,
there can be no gainsaying the fact that the controversy over his remarks has
been unhelpful in the obtaining circumstances. While the PML-N’s (and Nawaz’s)
narrative is that the PML-N is under attack and being victimised at the behest
of powerful state institutions, Shahbaz Sharif faces the difficult and
unenviable task of keeping a steady and non-confrontational hand on the tiller,
an effort not being helped by Nawaz Sharif’s rhetoric. The latter seems not
prepared to accept being marginalised within or by the PML-N, removed from the
political scene permanently, or sent to jail while the party plays by the
establishment’s newly laid ground rules.
Nawaz Sharif may not have
said anything that others before him have not. In his defence he has cited the
past utterings of General (retd) Pervez Musharraf and former interior minister
Rehman Malik amongst others to argue that the hullaballoo being created about
his remarks smacks of mala fide intent. Certainly the barrage of charges (and
worse, suggestions of enforcing Article 6) of ‘treason’, an anti-national stance,
etc, have flown thick and fast from many sides in what appears to be either a
knee-jerk reaction or pouncing on an opportunity to paint Nawaz Sharif in the
blackest colours. Nevertheless, in cooler moments it is incumbent on Nawaz
Sharif to realize that as a three times elected prime minister, his words carry
more weight domestically and internationally than many others. It is therefore
necessary for him to weigh his words more carefully, since even seemingly
innocent remarks can lead to serious consequences, as the present controversy
shows. This is doubly important in the current climate of the parlous relations
between the civilian and military sides of the equation. Already, the steady
stream of so-called electables leaving the PML-N and making a beeline for
greener pastures appears to be taking on the characteristics of an accelerating
exodus. Enlightened self-interest, the demands of the moment and time dictate a
more ‘softly, softly’ approach than the one adopted by Nawaz Sharif since his
ouster and subsequent troubles. Nawaz Sharif’s perception that the twin attack
on the Sharifs and the PML-N is a scheme to bring about a manipulated outcome
to the elections may not be entirely without foundation. But anything that
causes the election schedule to be disturbed (or the elections postponed
indefinitely), with the subsequent chaos and disarray throwing open once again
the whole conundrum surrounding the continuity and credibility of the
democratic project cannot, by any stretch of the imagination, be considered in
Nawaz Sharif’s, the PML-N’s, or the country’s best interests.
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