There is no doubt about the fact that the Islamabad High Court verdict against foreign minister Khawaja Asif is one of several judicial setbacks for the PML-N since the Supreme Court removed party founder Nawaz Sharif as prime minister in July.
Although Khawaja Asif has said that he would challenge the decision in the Supreme Court his disqualification by the court has certainly hurt party's electoral prospects. It may be recalled that Asif was among names tipped to replace Sharif when the three-time prime minister was disqualified by the Supreme Court in the Panama Papers case. The PML-N journey towards the 2018 general elections has now become more arduous than before.