Coming up after the news on the BBC World Service, it's hard talk with me, Stephen Saka.

The rise and fall of my guest today says much about the turbulent nature of Pakistani politics.

Ishak Dhar has long been seen as a loyal servant of one of the dominant figures in Pakistan's recent political history, Nawaz Sharif,

three-time Prime Minister and leader of the

most powerful faction of the Muslim League. In his last administration, Sharif made Ishak Dhar his

finance minister, and together they claim to be setting Pakistan on a sounder economic footing,

forging better relations with the IMF, improving the public finances,

and creating a more business-friendly environment. But they were also, according to Pakistan's

anti-corruption agency, the National Accountability Bureau, enriching themselves at the public's expense.

So even before Imran Khan was elected into office in

2018, both men had come under intense investigative scrutiny and ultimately both ended up

heading into exile in the UK. Now such is the feebrile nature of Pakistani politics that Nawaz Sharif is now using

his London base as a launch pad for a political campaign against Imran Khan's premiership. Both he and

Ishak Dar claim the graft allegations that they faced are nothing but political smears. But given their past, how much

credibility do they have as leading critics of the current government? Well, Ishak Dhar joins me now.

Welcome to Hard Talk. Thank you for inviting me. Let us begin with your personal status,

your legal status. You are a wanted man

in Pakistan. Are you here in London to escape the judicial process? Well, not really. I think

you must be aware of the Pakistan history that whenever in Pakistan over a period of 73 years,

the corruption rhetoric has been used in the last few dictatorships,

and the current one isn't different because this regime is known to be under a covert or a judicial martial law.

So I can prove that there is nothing against me.

...