Snowmail: Sharif back in Pakistan

Last Modified: 25 Nov 2007
By: Krishnan Guru-Murthy

Hi - a very quick one from me as we get into gear for tonight's programme at seven thirty.

I've just got off the phone from a very excited Nawaz Sharif. The man who was deposed as Prime Minister of Pakistan by General Musharraf eight years ago was finally allowed back today.

He is planning to contest the elections which the president hopes will allow him to stay in power, but is still demanding more concessions from Musharraf. Sharif has been largely ignored by the western media in recent weeks while many got over excited about Benazir Bhutto and Imran Khan (who always gets more attention in Britain than anyone in Pakistan can ever understand) and he is an intriguing character.

Britain and America have been suspicious of him until quite recently - worried about the old allegations (never proven and always strongly denied) of corruption, and by the political friends he keeps in the Islamic parties. But he still has a big power base in Pakistan and the fact he stuck to his determination not to deal with Musharraf may stand him well with voters.

Tonight he tells us what the president still needs to do, how he has resumed talks with Benazir Bhutto and how Britain helped his return.

He is a slow speaker at times, but a surprising man - I covered his first election victory rally in 1990 and as the crowd got worked up they started jostling me and my colleagues (two of whom were women who were getting groped left , right and centre). His security guards saw what was happening and hauled us into the back of his jeep.

He turned around and said 'hungry?'. We nodded. So he took us to his favourite village kebab stall and we munched away while pondering his new government. Can't imagine Gordon Brown doing the same....

Labour - all's well here? ===================

Speaking of which, the government has been telling us things are not as bad as they seem. After weeks of bad news, lost disks, bottled elections, etc ministers are getting a bit twitchy about being compared to the last years of the Major government after Black Wednesday.

That was the calamity from which they never recovered in the polls. Labour is probably right to argue the recent stories don't quite compare to Norman Lamont's nightmare day, but the comparisons seem to have got them rattled. We'll have the latest polls, accusations and reactions.

Lib Dem leadership: what does Charles think? ================================

And in what is perhaps a fairly politics obsessed email I should tell you about our Liberal Democrat scoop tonight. As 65,000 Liberal Democrat members are deciding who they'll back in the party's third leadership election in two years, the contest - between Chris Huhne and Nick Clegg - looks to be on a knife edge. And certainly the knives seem to have played quite a part in recent Liberal Democrat history.

Channel 4 News asked Charles Kennedy - the party's last but one leader - to cast his eye over the election. Like his successor - the more recently ousted Ming Campbell - Mr Kennedy's refusing to say who he's voting for. But it's a fascinating insight.

All that and much more - including how England have landed up in the same qualifying group as Croatia for the World Cup 2010.

See you soon.

Krishnan