The Return of the King: Nawaz Sharif

The year 2013 has been nothing but a fairy tale come true for the once-beleaguered Nawaz Sharif and his party, the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz). After successfully forming a government in 2008 in Punjab, the PML-N emerged as the most popular choice among voters in the country. An IRI and Gallup Pakistan poll put the party’s popularity at a whopping 37% right before the elections. The tigers of Punjab wrenched a massive, decisive victory over their rivals, securing 32.7% of the seats, nearly doubling their haul from the 2008 elections, formed the center without any outside help, and Nawaz Sharif returned to the Prime Minister’s role for a historic third time.

Fate proved its case as a cruel mistress, when the Interior Minister Chaudhary Nisar announced that the government would pursue a treason case against former president General (retd.) Pervez Musharraf, the same man who ousted Nawaz Sharif’s government in a bloodless coup almost exactly 14 years prior. Nisar’s brinkmanship aside, Nawaz Sharif has been the recent target of criticism for running a government that seems crippled by indecision and doubt. Some experts postulate that Nawaz Sharif will play his hand once both the COAS and CJP have been replaced towards the end of the year, but that will only unfold in 2014.