Interior minister says law will take its course upon ex-PM’s return.

ISLAMABAD  -  Caretaker Interior Minister Sar­fraz Ahmed Bugti on Tuesday had to retract his remarks regarding the arrest of former prime minis­ter Nawaz Sharif upon his return to the country following a backlash from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

The caretaker interior minis­ter said his statement about Nawaz had been politicized and taken out of context after the PML-N leaders reacted strongly to the comments passed by him during a TV show.

Bugti said that the Ministry of In­terior had nothing to do with the ar­rest of Nawaz and courts would look into the matter. “The caretaker gov­ernment has no political agenda,” he said, adding that it was welcoming that Nawaz was making a comeback into politics. He also said that law would take its course upon the re­turn of the ex-premier to the country.

A day earlier, the interior minis­ter in an interview to a private TV channel had said that the caretak­er government would arrest Nawaz upon his return if he failed to pro­cure bail from courts.

“As you know, the airport is a sen­sitive area and a mob would not be allowed there,” he said.

Former PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif has announced that he would land in Lahore on October 21. He has been living in self-exile in Lon­don since November 2019.

The remarks of caretaker interi­or minister received serious criti­cism from the PML-N. In a statement on X, PML-N Punjab president Rana Sanaullah termed Bugti’s comments as “exceeding his jurisdiction”.

“Before making such statements, look at the fate of former interior minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad,” he said. “Where Nawaz Sharif has to go from the airport on October 21 will not be decided by the interior min­istry,” Rana said, adding that it will be decided by the people.

The former interior minister said that Nawaz had already faced jails and police. “Don’t worry about Nawaz Sharif and focus on your work,” he advised Bugti.

Former information minister Mar­riyum Aurangzeb also said that it was neither the problem of the interior minister nor his decision as to where Nawaz Sharif would go from the air­port. “This is Nawaz Sharif’s and the people’s decision,” she reiterated.

She said the interior minis­ter should clear up the misunder­standing that he would remain in the present position “for life”.