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In most countries, top politicians celebrate important holidays with their loved ones at home, or with their constituents. Case in point, on Christmas, the Obamas venture out to their go-to holiday spot in the US of A: Hawaii.
But Pakistan is not most countries! Come Eid, many of our top politicians will say bye bye to Pakistan and hello to Inglestan, aka London Town.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's daughter Maryam Nawaz and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif have left for London, a PML-N source told Dawn. They will return to Pakistan with Nawaz, who is already in the British capital where he underwent heart surgery last month, the source said.
Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari along with his sisters, Bakhtawar and Asifa, also left for England from Karachi, a Bilawal House spokesperson confirmed to Dawn.com on Monday.
Muttahida Qaumi Movement's (MQM) Waseem Akhtar will also be spending the holidays in London, MQM Spokesman Wasay Jalil said, adding that senior party leader Dr Farooq Sattar is in Karachi at the moment.
Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan, however, will celebrate Eid with his sisters at his ancestral home in Zaman Park, Lahore.
But Khan is scheduled to leave for London later this week to watch Pakistan's first of the four Tests against England, at the historic Lord's Cricket Ground, with his sons.
The move is not unprecedented, as the country's leaders have, in the past, celebrated the occasion abroad.
We wonder what they'll be getting up to in London this time around?
Could they, like Nawaz Sharif, be sourcing a brand new wardrobe? Business is likely to be booming in Mayfair, come this weekend.
And what's Eid holidays without a slew of dinner parties? Will they bury the hatchet and invite each other for dinner? There are London properties to be shown off, and these guys know from experience that eating out in the age of camera phones isn't such a great idea. (Remember the backlash when PM Nawaz dared to grab a meal at a restaurant before his heart surgery?) You know what that means... it's dawat time!
Or maybe our politicians will have more practical pursuits, like disposing off troublesome property and the like?
We're not really surprised that London's their sweet escape time and time again. It is, after all, where they can roam around without protocol. Maybe our politicians just want a vacation from their VVIP status and chill out like the rest of us nobodies? They just might get to know how the common folk live.
Reporting by Imran Gabol, Raza Khan, Sammer Abbas, Ahsan Iftikhar Nagi