ISLAMABAD: Former interior minister Sheikh Rashid claimed on Friday that ex-prime minister and PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif will not visit Pakistan as part of a secret deal struck in London. The Awami Muslim League chief’s remarks came after several PML-N leaders stated that Nawaz Sharif will return to the country “soon,” but no date was given. Speaking on the occasion, the former interior minister stated that the 7 p.m. closing of markets and shops would be an “economic death knell” for shopkeepers, for which the current “imported” government would be held accountable. Due to rising oil prices, the government is considering limiting business hours as part of its energy conservation plan. Sheikh Rashid noted that the rupee had fallen to 210 per dollar, while it was trading at 220 per dollar in Hawala. He warned that the finance minister was about to give the country “another shot” at raising prices. According to the AML chief, the US ambassador has arrived in the country and the Chinese ambassador has left. He went on to say that India was demolishing Muslim homes while the government planned to open trade with it. In this scenario, he continued, Imran Khan is the “only popular leader” in the country, while the ruling coalition’s dozen political parties have fallen out of favor with the public. “Only Imran Khan has touched people’s hearts and minds,” he said. He went on to say that these dozen parties are “digging their own political graves.” “Vested interests are another name for the current imported government.” “This is a gang of thieves,” he said.