LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Shehbaz Sharif asserted on Wednesday that receiving party supremo Nawaz Sharif is their constitutional right.
“We are not afraid of jails and shackles and a warm welcome for our party supremo is our legal and constitutional right,” Shehbaz said while speaking to Geo News.
“I will go to the airport along with party workers to receive Nawaz on July 13,” the former Punjab chief minister vowed.
Shehbaz assured that party workers will not ‘damage’ official property during Nawaz’s welcome rally.
“We will welcome him in a peaceful manner,” he maintained.
Regarding the arrests of more than a hundred local leaders and workers of PML-N in a “midnight operation”, Shehbaz said, “The arrests are raising questions regarding the transparency of the upcoming polls.”
“Free and fair elections are the need of the hour and all parties must be allowed to campaign freely,” he stated.
Urging the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to take notice of the arrests, the PML-N president said, “Police also wants to arrest Hanif Abbasi.”
“As party president, I will not stay quiet on the matter of the arrests of workers and local leaders,” Shehbaz maintained.
PML-N’s top leadership is scheduled to meet today to discuss the plan of action following the arrests and arrangements for Nawaz’s return.
Ahead of party supremo Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz’s return to the country, over 100 PML-N local leaders and workers were detained in a “midnight operation” late Wednesday.
Several UC chairmen, vice chairmen and councilors are among those arrested from various areas of Lahore.
Following the arrests, a large number of PML-N workers protested outside police stations and key party leaders — Saad Rafique, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq and Pervaiz Malik — held an emergency press conference at 3:30am.
Nawaz and Maryam are expected to leave London today evening and land in Lahore around 6:00pm on Friday (July 13).
The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has arranged two helicopters for Nawaz and Maryam’s arrests upon their return.
The NAB plans to position one helicopter at Lahore’s Allama Iqbal International Airport and the other at the New Islamabad International Airport to take the two PML-N leaders into custody immediately after they land.
Further, containers have been placed at Mall Road in an expected bid to seal major routes leading to the airport in order to thwart political rallies on Friday.
