Eventually the police around the aircraft stood back, and Sharif was able to leave the plane and board a bus. He was taken to a VIP lounge in the terminal, where he was waiting to go through immigration when he was arrested.

“I think it is a dream come true after seven years to see your own country,” he said, after getting off the plane, and before his formal arrest and deportation. “It is a great feeling.”

Internal matter, say India and US

• INDIA: Describing the Sharif episode as an “internal matter” of Pakistan, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said: “We want a peaceful, prosperous and stable neighbour.”

• US: Calling it an “internal matter”, the White House urged that the upcoming Pakistan elections be “free and fair.”

• UK, EU: The European Union and the UK voiced concern over Sharif’s deportation and urged the Pakistan government to uphold the rule of law.