Nawaz Sharif will land in Islamabad at 11:45 am on Monday to challenge President General Pervez Musharraf after seven years of exile amid rumours about how the government was planning to handle the situation on his return.
The government was reported to be contemplating three options which include deporting the Sharif family to Saudi Arabia, and detaining him along with his brother Shahbaz Sharif. Sources said on Sunday that another possibility was to transport him to Lahore for keeping him under house arrest at his residence in the suburbs of the city.
Sources told Business Recorder that the authorities would try to deport Sharif in such a way that it would appear to be his own decision. They said some diplomats from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries will meet Nawaz at Islamabad airport to convince him for going to Saudi Arabia.
Some unconfirmed reports, denied by the government, suggested that Saad Hariri and Saudi intelligence chief Prince Muqrin were still in the capital and they would hold talks with Nawaz.
Some analysts believe that the pro-American Saudis and Lebanese want to block Nawaz comeback on United States pressure. Their point is that Washington thinks tat his presence in Pakistan can spoil a power-sharing deal Musharraf seeks with Benazir Bhutto.
Musharraf now looks dejected after eight years of all-power rule. Sources said if Sharif remained defiant in airport talks with Saudis, he would either be detained or transported to Lahore for house arrest.
Some reports recently suggested that a cell in Attock Fort had been renovated to detain Nawaz and his brother. Meanwhile, Punjab police is reported to have arrested more than 3,000 PML-N leaders and workers.
Security at Islamabad airport was on highest alert. Police have been ordered not to let people enter Islamabad from either Punjab or NWFP after Sunday midnight. Sources said that Attock Bridge would be blocked for any sort of traffic on Monday. All roads leading to Islamabad international airport were also to be converted into 'no-go' areas for private vehicles. Even media persons have been asked not to visit the airport after midnight.
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