T has been a strange diversion with Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif suddenly boarding a plane especially sent for him by his hosts and flying off to Saudi Arabia. With former prime minister Mian Nawaz Sharif following him, and the presence of a couple of Pakistani ministers in the holy land at the same time, rumours inevitably circulated. There has been speculation that the Sharifs were asked to explain their business connections to the crown prince who is supposedly cracking down on corruption in Saudi Arabia. Others have said that Saudi royalty was trying to restore cordial relations between the once inseparable brothers.

Most vociferous has been the talk that the Saudis were trying to help the Sharifs strike a deal with the establishment here. All these opinions were persistent enough for the pundits to foretell a flight undertaken by Nawaz Sharif to get away from his troubles in Pakistan and seek asylum abroad. Meanwhile, political opponents, such as Imran Khan and Asif Zardari, have warned against a new deal that could save the former prime minister`s household from ruin. While all these guesses and predictions have continued, not too much noise has been generated by the Sharifs themselves.

Initially, the Sharifs appeared to give the impression that they favoured the chatter which suggested they might be about to benefit from yet another rescue operation by the Saudis. But as time passed, and a more nuanced analysis of their secret mission abroad ensued, it was felt that it would be in the interest of the Sharif brothers and their party to give some kind of justification for their endeavour, whatever the real purpose of their visit. For instance, they could insist that it was a private visit, a pilgrimage. If there has been any such explanation though, it has not been strong enough, and the rumour-mongers have had far too much room in which to exercise their imagination. Whatever the case, without more clarity, the events might hurt the protagonists in the long run. They would be well advised to make a fresh assessment and ask themselves whether the feeling that Pakistan`s affairs are at the mercy of another country however dear and friendly would resonate positively with the people here. In fact there may be no dispute over it being a bad, unwanted development. It is time, therefore, that matters were made more transparent about their visit to Saudi Arabia.