Pakistan's powerful army 'intends to stay neutral', on the Supreme Court's decision to ask former military ruler Pervez Musharraf to explain why he imposed emergency rule nearly two years ago and sacked over 60 judges, according to a media report on Thursday. A bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, who was among the 60 judges sacked by Musharraf, had on Wednesday issued a notice to the former president.The move sparked speculation in political circles.
Amidst unprecedented security arrangements to ward off any anti-China protest and militant threat, the Pakistani leg of the Olympic torch relay kicked off in Islamabad on Wednesday at a colourful ceremony attended by President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani.
Senior leaders of Bhartiya Janata Party L K Advani and Sushma Swaraj on Friday termed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's talks with his Pakistani counterpart Gilani as a complete surrender of the national interests.
India and Pakistan were close to sealing an agreement on Kashmir and other contentious issues between the two countries when President President Pervez Musharraf was in power. "...I had told Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and he had agreed, of course. It was his turn to come to Pakistan and we had decided that if he comes and there is no signature on at least one out of those three, if not all the three, it would be a total flop and that must never happen," he said.
An official statement quoted Gillani as saying that "the resolution of (the) Kashmir issue in accordance with the wishes of the people of Kashmir could ensure lasting peace in the region and bring about much needed progress and prosperity for the people." He also said that Pakistan "believes in the peaceful resolution of the Kashmir issue through dialogue" and expressed "confidence that India would also reciprocate positively in this regard."
Pakistan's Supreme Court on Friday acquitted former prime minister Nawaz Sharif of hijacking charges, stemming from the military coup against his government in 1999, paving the way for his return to electoral politics. Sharif had been banned from office by a lower court after being found guilty of hijacking the then army chief General Pervez Musharraf's plane in 1999.
The Pakistan People's Party-led coalition comprising Musharraf's opponents came to power after his ally Pakistan Muslim League-Qaid was routed in the February 18 election. But the former General, who is being sidelined by the new dispensation, has apparently decided to keep a distance from the Parliament by not convening a joint session, which he would have addressed.Under the previous government, Musharraf had addressed parliament once during its five-year term.
The new foreign secretary brings formidable experience on Sino-Indian relations to South Block
If former dictator Pervez Musharraf returns to Pakistan to participate in the country's politics, the ruling Pakistan People's Party government will put him on trial in the Nawab Akbar Bugti murder case as well as for illegal detentions in the Supreme Court judges case, sources aware of the 'exit deal' have revealed. In case the former dictator breached the clandestine deal, the law would take its own course and he would have to surrender himself to the courts, say sources.
The Pakistan Peoples' Party-led coalition government has sent an unambiguous message to the United States that any mess with the newly elected democratic dispensation by President Pervez Musharraf will not be tolerated. The PPP leadership, however, held out a categorical assurance to the Bush administration that the new government would not create a situation leading to the unceremonious exit of Musharraf.
Pakistan's new Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani on Saturday offered a dialogue to militants who lay down their arms, saying ending terrorism is his first priority. He also pledged to reinstate the judges sacked by President Pervez Musharraf during emergency last year. Unveiling a slew of populist measures in his first policy statement after securing an unprecedented unanimous vote of confidence, Gillani told the National Assembly that terrorism is the biggest problem.
Pakistan's incoming government should convert the death sentence of Indian national Sarabjit Singh into life imprisonment on "humanitarian grounds" and ensure his early release, caretaker Human Rights Minister Ansar Burney said on Monday. President Pervez Musharraf had on March 19 deferred the hanging of Sarabjit, scheduled for April 1, by 30 days after receiving an appeal for clemency from the Indian government and the condemned man's family.
In an interview to a private television channel, Musharraf claimed that he had shared all details with Sharif regarding the Kargil conflict.
Pakistan has moved one step closer to receiving massive American economic and military largesse -- reminiscent of the billions of dollars it received during the Reagan and George W Bush Administrations when military dictators Mohammad Zia-ul Haq and Pervez Musharraf respectively were in charge -- to the tune of $1.5 billion annually over five years, when the Senate-Lugar aid bill steamrolled through the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee by a vote of 16-0.
Musharraf had deposed Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and other judges after he imposed emergency in November 2007. The judges had challenged the constitutional validity of the emergency imposed by him. Musharraf had replaced the judges with a hand-picked judiciary, who also validated his re-election as president.
Clinton said that a stable relationship between India and Pakistan would also help promote long-term stability in Afghanistan. She added that the recent elections in Pakistan had proved the Bush administration's policy towards Pakistan wrong.
Musharraf's statement comes in the wake of the postponing of the SAARC summit which scheduled for November in Islamabad.
Pakistan's main opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz has asked the government to put former President Pervez Musharraf on trial for allegedly being responsible for the assassination of ruling Pakistan Peoples Party leader Benazir Bhutto in 2007.
Zubaida Jalal, a former minister in Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's cabinet, was defeated in Monday's parliamentary polls, television channels reported.
Exact dates and progamme of the visit have not yet been finalised, a foreign ministry spokesman said in Islamabad.
The United States has refused to confirm or deny reports claiming Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has rebuffed top intelligence officials of the Bush administration, on proposed American operations inside Pakistan, including joint operations.
Amid Western concern over deteriorating security situation and Pakistan's ability to hold free and fair polls, President Pervez Musharraf arrived in London on a three-day visit during which he will meet British Prime Minister Gordon Brown among others.
As Pakistan is gripped by a volatile situation following a crackdown on Taliban militants, question marks hang over whether former President Pervez Musharraf, who is currently on a trip to Europe, will return home or not.Musharraf is not expected to return to Pakistan from a foreign lecture tour in the near future, said his close aide Major General (retired) Rashid Qureshi.Musharraf left Pakistan for a private visit to Saudi Arabia on April 19.
The Scotland Yard team, probing the assassination of former Pakistan prime minister Benazir Bhutto, is facing difficulties and demanded the slain leader's post-mortem.
Former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has been accused by a former air force chief of "ruining" a $ 1.2 billion deal for acquiring surveillance aircraft from Sweden's Saab firm for "possible kickbacks".
Caretaker Interior Minister Hamid Nawaz Khan said that President Pervez Musharraf, Nawaz Sharif, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, former federal ministers Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao, Ejaz-ul-Haq, Amir Muqam and Sheikh Rashid Ahmed and former Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi faced threats to their lives from extremists.
"There is no possibility of extremists coming into the government in Pakistan and therefore taking over the (nuclear) assets...through the political or the democratic system," he said.
Pakistan's former military ruler Pervez Musharraf, on a self-imposed exile for more than a year, has said he plans to return home to re-enter politics and did not rule out making a bid for premiership.
The Pakistan government on Saturday reappointed another four judges sacked by former president Pervez Musharraf, taking to 12 the number of justices restored since Wednesday amid allegations that it was pursuing a policy of 'selective' reinstatement. The four judges of the Lahore high court, who were among 60 deposed during last year's emergency, were administered oath by provincial Chief Justice Syed Zahid Hussain Bukhari at a simple ceremony in the eastern city.
Sharif also urged other parties to boycott the elections.In the event of a collective response, the credibility of the January 8 elections could be seriously called into question. Sharif said that after three days of mourning, he would chalk out a strategy to challenge Musharraf's rule but he rebutted suggestions that he could gain political mileage from her demise.
The crisis encircling Pakistan's fragile ruling coalition reached a boiling point on Sunday with the Pakistan People's Party refusing to comply with Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz's demand on reinstating sacked judges within a deadline and the ally also not enthusiastic about supporting Asif Ali Zardari for presidency.
Heeding his party's wishes, Pakistan Peoples Party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari on Saturday decided to contest the September 6 Presidential election, but the ruling coalition appeared to be heading for a deeper crisis over the issue of reinstatement of judges sacked by former President Pervez Musharraf.However, the crisis in the government, triggered by the second largest partner of the coalition Pakistan Muslim League-N chief Nawaz Sharif threatening to pull out .
President George W Bush on Friday assured Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani of the US administration's continued support for the democratic government in Pakistan in the wake of former President Pervez Musharraf's resignation.
Former Pakistan premier Nawaz Sharif has threatened to pull his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party out of the ruling coalition and "sit in the opposition" if judges sacked by former president Pervez Musharraf are not reinstated by Friday.
Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf on Friday lifted the six-week-old state of emergency and revived the Constitution as part of efforts to counter criticism by the world community and opposition parties which have expressed apprehensions that the upcoming elections would not be free and fair.
A report, titled 'Threat to VVIPs, politicians, foreign missions and military installations', said terrorists could carry out suicide attacks disguised as women or as military or police personnel.
Even as it sought to 'internationalise' the Jammu and Kashmir situation, Pakistan said on Thursday it was committed to improving relations with India and resolving all outstanding issues in a just and peaceful manner for the progress and prosperity of the two countries.
President Pervez Musharraf had warned slain Benazir Bhutto that her life would be in danger if she did not extend him political cooperation prior to her return to Pakistan, a new book has revealed.Referring to a conversation between Bhutto and Musharraf in September 2007, which was recorded by United States intelligence agencies, Pulitzer Prize winning US journalist Ron Suskind's book The Way of the World, has disclosed the President's veiled threat to the former premier.
The session of the 342-member Assembly commenced on Monday evening as the Paksitan People's Party-led coalition said it has drawn up an "unimpeachable" chargesheet listing allegations of misconduct, violation of Constitution and financial irregularities against Musharraf, who turned 65 on Monday.
Last year, Musharraf declared Ifikhar Muhammad Chaudhry a non-functional chief justice of Pakistan. This year, he is becoming the first non-functional President of the country. Some close friends have already advised Musharraf to step down quietly, but the General is still confident that his hand picked army chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kyani will rescue him soon.
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