'Nawaz Sharif Wanted Peace With India'

Why was he removed?
I don’t know. As far as I know, everything was all right till October 11. Even the next day, when Sharif went to office, there was no sign of any tension on his face. A week before the military coup, Gen Pervez Musharraf came to our native town, Raiwind, along with his wife. We had a good meeting-cum-dinner. I can’t say what went wrong, but Sharif did tell me in jail that he would be disclosing the conspiracy in court.

Did the coup have something to do with Kargil or with Sharif’s policy of friendliness with India?
I will not answer the first part of your question. Yes, Nawaz wanted peace in the region and for that he wanted to resolve disputed issues with India. Was it wrong to talk about peace? He also invited the Indian prime minister here and made it clear that without peace neither India nor Pakistan can progress. There has to be a "give and take" on disputed matters. India too is in trouble because of Kashmir and wants to resolve the issue. Nawaz Sharif wanted to see Pakistan progress and become an Asian tiger. For this he wanted to bring Pakistan out of the crisis and resolve long-standing disputes.

Then, one must remember that if there is jehad in Islam, there’s also the treaty of Hudeybea (a treaty of peace between Prophet Mohammad and his enemies). Nawaz Sharif wanted peace with India in order to develop Pakistan, even if that meant a few sacrifices....

Sharif has also been accused of exporting sugar to India and is likely to face another case on this count.
Twenty-eight sugar mills were given a license to export sugar to India, which includes four from the Fauji (military-owned) foundation. Yes, our sugar mills were also given a quota. And since we produce more sugar than the others, we may’ve been given a larger quota. But we did not violate any rules or take any undue, extra advantages.

Is there is a rift within your party over how to get your husband out of jail?
Differences are a part of politics. I don’t think the party will split or divide on this issue. It’s only a matter of perception. Some want to go in for a mass movement while others want to wait for the outcome of the trial. I’m not a member of the Pakistan Muslim League (PML), neither do I want to impose my ideas on the PML. There are very senior members in the party and whatever they do will be in the interests of the country and the party. However, they are all unanimous on the leadership of Nawaz Sharif.

Are you optimistic about your husband’s future?
His release may take a long time as the military authorities might involve him in other cases as well. Benazir Bhutto also ordered 164 cases against our family but could not find anything. Now they have arrested all the men in our family. The women members of our family, who had never stepped out after sunset, were forced to look after our factories, schools, colleges and hospitals! One day, when my father-in-law Mian Sharif fell ill, there was no one to take him to hospital in the night. I and my daughter-in-law, Saira, took him to the hospital and stayed with him the whole night. Despite all this, I am confident that one day Nawaz Sharif will be free and democracy will return to the country.

What support are you getting, or wish to get, from other political parties in Pakistan?
Every party wants the return of democracy in the country. So far, the PML hasn’t contacted any other party but all decisions will be taken in the interests of the country. I am not the PML leader and only advise them at times.

Your husband has been in power twice and he always had a troubled relationship with the army chiefs. Be it Gen Waheed, Gen Jehangir Karamat and now Gen Musharraf. Why did he have these confrontations with them?
It’s a difficult question to answer as I am not involved in politics. However, I think the problem is the distribution of power. Whenever the army tried to dictate to him, he resisted any kind of dictatorship. As I mentioned earlier, the army in Pakistan has had this unfortunate trend of involving itself in politics.

Do you meet your husband and son, both of whom have been kept in different jails?
My husband has been kept in Landhi prison in district Malir. I’m allowed to meet him for half an hour twice a week. But we are not allowed any privacy during the meeting as four people, including an old lady cop, are always present. So, we only talk about our children and family. And it’s Nawaz Sharif who every time gives me the strength to fight, "You should never give up," he says. My son, Hussain Nawaz, is confined in Rawalpindi jail. I am allowed to meet him for two hours once a week-again without any privacy and surrounded by plainclothes cops. It’s more of a hard experience for him as he is not used to this sort of politics. But being in jail has taught him a few things and he’s gaining strength everyday. He once told me, "Look mama, even a person like Air Marshal Wiqar Azeem and many others much elder to me are in jail. Compared to them, I’m just a young man. The military authorities have no case against me." My daughters and daughter-in-law accompany me to the court during the trial. Sometimes they take their children along to see their grandfather. It is quite an experience for me as well as for the whole family. But we try to be strong. My father-in-law has never allowed my mother-in-law to cry for her sons Nawaz, Shahbaz and grandson Hussain.

What do you want from Gen Pervez Musharraf ?
I want the army to go back to defend the country and respect their oath. This is the feeling of every Pakistani. Once democracy is restored I will go back home, as I have no intention to involve myself in politics. But as long as Nawaz Sharif is in jail I will continue to fight for the restoration of democracy in this land, in Qaid-e-Azam’s Pakistan.