Boisterous crowds greet Nawaz at the iconic Minar-e-Pakistan rally

“Kahan se chhedu fasana kaha tamam karu, woh meri taraf dekhe toh main salam karu!” Loosely translated, it means, “From where do I start and where do I end (my story), only if he/she looks at me, then I can salute (him/her).” As he started his much-awaited speech with this sher (couplet), the massive gathering waiting since afternoon for their leader, Nawaz Sharif, erupted in loud jubilation.

After all, Sharif was returning to his country and his party, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)’s bastion, after four years in self-imposed exile and addressing the rally at the iconic Minar-e-Pakistan.

Landing at about 6 pm at Lahore’s airport, Sharif went straight to offer Maghreb prayers at the Lahore Fort, which the party described as “thanking Allah and praying for the country and the nation.” Party leaders Shehbaz (his younger brother), Ishaq Dar and others joined him at the prayers before they reached the Minar-e-Pakistan venue.

Maryam Nawaz, the former prime minister’s daughter, held the fort from the podium for more than an hour as the restless crowds joined her in cheering their leader and waiting for Sharif to arrive at the venue.

Interspersed with songs chosen for the occasion, the 49-year-old Vice President of Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party engaged the people with questions and made them answer in chorus.

Maryam roared “Muslim League Noon ka nara gunje Pakistan mein (the slogan of PML-N reverberates in Pakistan) as she appealed to play the song, “Ye Mulk Bachalo Nawaz Sharif” (Please come and save this country, Nawaz Sharif) again and again. The song with a catchy beat with a repeated chorus of “Nawaz Sharif Nawaz Sharif” is the party’s new anthem released on Friday, a day ahead of Sharif’s landing in Pakistan and was played on loop at the rally.

The other two songs 'Kharay Hain Hum Maidaan Main' and a version of “Hai Jamalo, waah waah Jamalo,” a traditional song from last century, also kept playing again and again. Drones and multiple media cameras captured the massive rally as against the announced time of 5:30 pm for Sharif’s speech, it started at almost 7:30 pm local time.

Soon after he arrived and pleasantries and emotional hugs were exchanged with his family members and party leaders, PML-N’s Khawaja Saad Rafique read out his party’s resolution condemning Israeli atrocities on Palestinians and the situation in Kashmir.

The whole time that the rally continued, PML-N’s official X handle and other social media handles ran photos and videos with crisp captions using hashtags such as #TheEraOfNawazSharif in English and #Khush_Amdeed_NawazSharif in Urdu.

“I love you too,” he said in less than 10 minutes of starting his speech describing it as something that his followers were eager to hear.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)