Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif speaking at a function in Marriott Islamabad after he became prime minister second time proudly confided that the key to his success in politics was policy of confrontation. Indeed, that is not far from truth. He is still in the same mode. Being a Capricorn — one can understand the element of in-built stubbornness in him and why it often ends up in futility. One should believe not to pin prick those who are already licking their self-inflicted wounds. However, being a student of history, I am pained to see them repeat their mistakes. What happened in Islamabad in the Accountability Court on Monday at the time of disqualified prime minister’s hearing was something of a trailer of 1997. It was perhaps among the most ignominious events in our history. First an internal revolt was conjured, by buying judges to uproot the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and when it did not seem to materialise, hordes of PML-N goons, including ministers were let lose to besiege the CJP. They attacked the Supreme Court, forced Chief Justice Syed Sajjad Ali Shah to resign, later followed by President Farooq Leghari’s. It no doubt set an ideal stage for the Prime Minister to become Ameerul Momineen as desired by him. Thank God but for his colossal blunders, his dream remained unfulfilled. Not that previous government’s ride on the treacherous path to the completion of its five-year tenure was strewn with roses. It had an establishment all the time blowing hot down its neck, opposition led by Nawaz Sharif constantly trying to run it down and a media persistently forecasting its demise next hour, next day, and next month until its last day of completion of its tenure. One shouldn’t kick someone while they are down. However, as a student of history, I am troubled to see the PML-N repeat its mistakes. What happened at the Accountability Court on Monday looked like a trailer of the 1997 incident at the Supreme Court premises One is reminded of how PML-N overtly and covertly connived with what martyred Benazir Bhutto used to call ‘state within the state’. MNS and his supporters got so buoyant with the scent of success reaching them that they jumped on bandwagon of the lawyers’ movement for the restoration of Chief Justice in the name of rule of law. The complicity of his party with the then restored Chief Justice was so murky and obvious that it seemed that CJP’s excessive use of judicial activism had only one aim — to make running of the government impossible. Memogate was expected to strike the fatal blow, prospects of PPPP government’s demise were so certain that MNS himself decided to be present in the court masquerading in a black coat. MNS’ relationship with the judiciary and the establishment or what now Interior Minister Rao Ahsan Iqbal calls, ‘state within the state’ — is but a manifestation of ungratefulness to those who have been responsible for all the pelf and power enjoyed by the Sharifs for more than 30 years. Retrospectively speaking, the apex judiciary always bailed him out. In 1993 when President Ghulam Ishaq Khan dismissed him for corruption, it was the Supreme Court that restored him declaring his removal as unconstitutional whereas the same apex court had upheld Benazir Bhutto’s dismissal in 1990 on the same charges. That’s how perception developed that there are two sets of laws — one for Sindhi Prime Minister and the other for Punjab’s. Besides himself a stubborn Capricorn, his tragedy is that his ministers too — with the exception of few — have been found to be haughty, arrogant and too temperamental. It is a matter of record that his top ministers were publicly known to be not on speaking terms with each other. Ch Nisar was openly at war with Khawaja Asif who had on his own earned notoriety for his maltreatment of female Parliamentarians. Since Prime Minister did not give importance to Parliament, his ministers too were hardly respectful to it. By their own default, acts of omission and commission — they allowed space to other institutional players — be it judiciary or ‘state within the state’. One does not know how and why of Monday incident and who ordered deployment of Rangers for the security of the judge and the court — the initiative was indeed commendable. It seemed the person was not only conscious of PML-N’s past but was fully aware of jingoistic mood of the ruling party. Defiance or confrontation being the name of the ongoing name — if the Rangers had not been put on duty, any minor untoward incident in the limited court room space thronged by whole army of ministers and PML-N storm troopers — could have taken an ugly turn. In order to avert it court had already announced that entry would only be on passes issued by it. Ministers were specifically requested not to. However, the situation did take an ugly turn when the Ministers and the party in power assumed the role of hostile opposition. Instead of setting an example in responsible behaviour, the Interior Minister himself took offence when he and PML-N storm troopers were denied entry into the court by the Rangers. Ever since then his fury is in rage. According to him there can’t be ‘a state within the state’ and repeated his threat to resign if he failed to get the “culprit or culprits” responsible punished. However, it is said that the government itself had extended the authorization to the Rangers for three months for maintenance of law and order, security of government buildings and safety of its personnel and the citizens under Article 245. Clash of institutions is being engineered. PML-N leadership thinks it would gain by it and it shall ride triumphantly on the crest of popularity as a political martyr. On the other hand, forces opposed to him are checkmating his every move. They expect sooner than later, he would rest in peace in the grave he himself dug aided by his myopic party members. Whatever, at the end of the day — the adage that as you sow so shall you reap — would have the last laugh. The writer is the former High Commissioner of Pakistan to UK and a veteran journalist Published in Daily Times, October 4th 2017.