Daniyal-Naeemul Haque brouhaha is over, journalism stands fatally wounded on May 24, 2018Business on the TV set was as usual – the incoming guests discussing the controversies of the day, breaking news announcements – with a lack of novelty news, the talk show was set to wrap up without much ado. But it didn’t. The big news was not about what the guests had said or even […]
New Year: new uncertainties, new hopes on January 1, 2018The New Year brings new uncertainties and new openings for Pakistan. Will the system be wrapped up? Is it curtains for PML-N headed by Nawaz Sharif? Will he and his daughter, the mercurial Maryam, be exiled in exchange for a PML-N headed by Shehbaz Sharif as claimed by a British newspaper? These are the questions […]
What is cooking in Saudi Arabia? on December 30, 2017Five months after his disqualification, Nawaz Sharif has packed his bags again for Saudi Arabia while his younger brother Shehbaz Sharif, who left for the holy lands on Wednesday, is already there. Pakistan is abuzz again with the news of another Saudi Arabia backed NRO, while the last NRO was implemented 17-years ago in the […]
Nawazs overtures and PPP’s reservations on August 18, 2017The ‘reluctant’ Prime Minister who had focused on finishing developmental projects and remained secluded even from his cabinet has all of a sudden turned into an ideologue pledging to transform the country on new constitutional contours. Nawaz Sharif is making big claims. He is talking about a new social contract and seeking a Grand National […]
What lies ahead for Nawaz? on August 14, 2017 Islamabad: The four-day-long march of former Premier Nawaz Sharif has ended but our search for answers about the destiny of Pakistan and its fragile, eternally vulnerable, and besieged democracy continues. From start to finish, the message Nawaz Sharif hammered home was on humiliation of the public mandate in the wake of his disqualification on […]
Return of the native: GT Road it is on August 6, 2017 A week after his disqualification, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif invited two dozen journalists and media moguls, including this scribe, to convey his thoughts and future actions to all and sundry. One word described him: Defiance. The palatial Punjab House in the foothills of Margallas had a huge hustle and bustle on a quiet […]
All eyes on JIT as Maryam Nawaz summoned on black day on June 28, 2017Maryam Nawaz Sharif has been summoned to appear before the JIT just five days before its time runs out. The April 20 verdict that decided that she was not dependent on PM Nawaz broke the proverbial link that could probably hurt the premier. While she and her brothers have already declared that she is not […]
Day after the nuclear option is exercised on June 25, 2017The Panama Papers verdict has been out for quite some time. The manner in which the case has since proceeded gives an impression that the judiciary has indicted and punished itself. The on-going Joint Investigation Team (JIT) probe under the authority of the Supreme Court of Pakistan bench may end up polarising the country even […]
Why the party is not over yet? on June 22, 2017The Joint Investigation Team (JIT)constituted to probe Panama Papers leaks related to the Sharif family submitted the third report to the Supreme Court bench overseeing its proceedings on Thursday afternoon. The team now has till the 10th of the next month to complete its investigation. After the final report on the probe is submitted to […]
Of white car and black money on June 18, 2017 After a long session just shy of four hours, when Shahbaz Sharif emerged out of the Judicial Academy he said less about what he was quizzed and more about the political environment the house of Sharifs was going through. Selective accountability was his complaint and the target was Musharraf and camp that supported him. […]