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Senior journalist turned politician Azeem Chaudhry, who had covered some of his sermons at that time, said Dr Tahirul Qadri was close to the father of then-chief minister Nawaz Sharif, but even he could not save him when the cleric was made to leave the Punjab University law college in a controversial decision. That is not the only controversy Dr Tahirul Qadri has been in. Chaudhry questions the motives behind his return to politics.
Dr Tahirul Qadri addressed a large public gathering at Iqbal Park near Minar-e-Pakistan on December 23, saying he had come back to Pakistan to save the country from corrupt and dishonest leaders. He criticized politicians without naming them, but the references were more than obvious. He quoted generously from the constitution, at times without proper context. He made the case for involving the two main "stakeholders" - the judiciary and the army - in the selection of a caretaker set up to "hold free, fair and transparent elections". For that, he said, the constitution allowed delaying the polls.
"Dr Tahirul Qadiri must read the post 18th Amendment Constitution," Zafarullah Khan of the Center of Civic Education Pakistan said in his recent blog, pointing to the fact that a caretaker prime minister is now appointed by the leader of the house and the leader of the opposition.
But when the cleric warned he would march towards Islamabad with millions of people if his demands were not met by January 10, he knew what he was saying.
The cleric warned he would march towards Islamabad with millions of people if his demands are not met by January 10
Sources close to him say he has a roadmap in the run-up to the general elections that includes making alliances with like-minded parties including the MQM and Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf.
MQM expects to organize a matching rally at Karachi's famous Nishtar Park, to be addressed by Dr Tahirul Qadri. It would probably be the first time MQM chief Altaf Hussain would limit himself to just welcoming another speaker.
Sources in the PPP said Interior Minister Rehman Malik tried his best to persuade the MQM against attending the Lahore rally, but he failed. The presence of the entire Rabita Committee of the MQM in the rally indicated it would love to capitalize on Dr Qadri's support base.
The political circles in Islamabad are speculating if Dr Tahirul Qadri, Altaf Hussain and Imran Khan can forge an electoral alliance. "The script has already been written," said a PML-N leader. He said Dr Qadri had given a voice to the concerns of the judiciary and the army.
Sources said the two mainstream parties are likely to develop a consensus on the appointment of a caretaker prime minister, since none of them would like the Election Commission of Pakistan to make the final call.
Senator Ishaq Dar, who is probably the least hated PML-N leader among the PPP leadership, is spearheading the backchannel dialogue with the ruling party.
Several names surfaced during the talks, including Asma Jehangir, Justice (r) Nasir Aslam Zahid and Justice (r) Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui. The latest of these names is Shaukat Tareen, the former finance minister.
The replacement of Governor Latif Khosa with Makhdoom Ahmed Mehmood in Punjab is one of the two steps President Zardari has recently taken to win improve the PPP's electoral performance in Punjab. The other was the appointment of Manzoor Wattoo as PPP Punjab President.
In its game plan, the PPP has divided the province in three parts - the south, the center and the north, where the Gilanis, Manzoor Wattoo and Raja Pervez Ashraf managing the affairs respectively.
And as the entire nation is gearing up for the most exciting elections, the calls of delaying them under Article 254 of the constitution may not become popular among the masses.
The Article 254 says: "When any act or thing is required by the Constitution to be done within a particular period and it is not done within that period, the doing of the act or thing shall not be invalid or otherwise ineffective by reason only that it was not done within that period."
Law Minister Farooq Naek does not agree with Dr Tahirul Qadri's argument that the provision can be used to delay elections. He said the timeframe for holding the general elections was specifically and clearly defined in the constitution, and that could not be done away with.
Some PPP leaders have suggested introducing a new constitutional amendment restricting the caretaker government from extending its tenure under any circumstances.
They even suggest any such action by the caretaker government, without or without the collusion of the judiciary or any other quarter, should be punishable under Article 6 of the Constitution.
But articles of the constitution may not be applicable to Dr Tahirul Qadri, because he is a citizen of Canada.
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