Police in Pakistan's Punjab province on alert ahead of ex-PM Nawaz Sharif's arrival in Lahore

While there are celebrations in Pakistan for the arrival of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Saturday, Police in the country’s Punjab province are on alert.

A couple of threat alerts have been flagged by the security agencies which has put home department and police on its toes to ensure security for the 73-year-old supreme leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) who is returning to the country four years after he went to the UK on a self-imposed exile, a report by Dawn said.

After arriving in Pakistan, Sharif will address a major rally of his party.

According to the report, a senior home department official said a high-level meeting was held in which the Punjab police was taken into confidence to make coordinated efforts to ensure security for the three-time former prime minister.

The PML-N is hoping that the presence of Nawaz in the country will benefit the party ahead of the general election in January.

Nawaz, who is returning to the country after ending his four-year self-imposed exile in the United Kingdom has arrived in Dubai from Jeddah and will travel to Pakistan in a chartered plane on Saturday.

He is scheduled to appear at the mass public meeting at the Minar-e-Pakistan in Lahore on Saturday evening.

Meanwhile, Shehbaz Sharif, Nawaz’s younger brother has asked party leaders to accord a historic reception to his elder brother, it said. According to the permission granted by the Lahore district administration, the PML-N has to adhere to some 39 conditions, including ensuring all requisite precautionary measures in and around the venue for the safety of participants and the general public.

No speeches against constitutional offices/armed forces/judiciary shall be uttered, the district administration of Lahore said last week while granting permission to the party to hold a rally at the Minar-e-Pakistan.

In his address, Nawaz Sharif will give a road map to pull the country out of the economic mess, Hamza Shehbaz, the nephew of Nawaz Sharif, said last week.

With inputs from agencies