New Delhi: Following the arrival of former Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad after a seven-year exile, the country witnessed a complete clampdown on his supporters and the media.
All private channels have been taken off air in the country and jammers were installed to block cell phones at the Islamabad Airport.
Pakistani authorities also detained more than 2,000 Nawaz supporters after his arrival.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Information Minister Muhammad Ali Durrani on Saturday said that Nawaz Sharif was morally bound to complete his period in exile, as any violation of his understanding with the Saudi Arabian authorities would put credibility of all Pakistani citizens into question.
Durrani said Nawaz’s refusal to abide by the accord was a big question mark on the state guarantees given to Pakistan by Saudi Arabia.
Asking the media to handle the issue carefully, the information minister said, “Since this is a highly sensitive issue, we should avoid any speculation.”
The media too was not being allowed inside the Islamabad International Airport premises.
Many political leaders, known to be close to Nawaz Sharif, have been placed under house arrest, including MMA President Qazi Hussain Ahmed, Liaqat Baloch and PML-N president Makhdoom Javed Hashmi.
Emotional homecoming for Nawaz
Setting foot on home soil after spending seven years in exile, an emotional Nawaz Sharif on Monday said he was uncertain about his fate.
Wiping away tears as soon as the aircraft touched down at the airport, Nawaz moved out of the business class in the airplane and sat among his supporters in the economy class.
He said it was an "emotional moment" for him. "I have a great feeling that I will be able to set foot on Pakistani soil," he told reporters before he was allowed to disembark from the PIA aircraft that brought him to Islamabad from London.
Condemning the arrest of the leaders of his party and allied outfits, he said "going by what is happening, it seems that the government has not learnt from its mistakes. It is repeating the same mistakes that the previous dictator had done".
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