What we have seen in the high-handed handling of the whole Nawaz Sharif arrival and then deportation drama is only a symptom of the disease plaguing Pakistani politics and not a well-thought-out government strategy. This government is totally incapable of planning, any planning — period. Chaudhry Shujaat, the purported kingmaker and the ruling party chief, came on TV to say that the government should allow Sharif to come, stay and contest elections. “We will give him a tough time in the next election,” he said, with some confidence.

Who, then, decided that Sharif must be humiliated and sent back, come what may? The answer lies in Musharraf’s ego, not as a person, perhaps, but certainly as a man heading the almighty army. Nothing that could be seen as an act of defiance of the army must be tolerated, say the gods ruling the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. They have acted, yet again, not only in contempt of court, but showing forcefully the army’s classical disdain for the rule of law. This may have far-reaching legal consequences; but when has the military, this one best trained for staging coups, cared much for legality?

An eerie sense of deja vu and predictability surrounded Sharif’s short-lived return to Pakistan, Monday morning, under Supreme Court orders which restrained the government from thwarting his arrival home. He did land in Islamabad, set foot on Pakistani soil, held negotiations with government and Arab officials and then was put on a Jeddah-bound plane, though against his expressed desire. This was decidedly the last time his Arab friends bailed him out.

... contd.