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ISLAMABAD : Pakistan's Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that former prime minister Nawaz Sharif can return home from exile, dealing a fresh setback to his embattled arch foe President Pervez Musharraf.
Sharif said he would come back within weeks to stand in upcoming elections and lead the growing opposition to military ruler Musharraf, who overthrew the industrialist-turned-politician in October 1999.
Hundreds of Sharif's supporters danced jubilantly and sacrificed two goats outside the court after the verdict was announced, chanting "Go Musharraf, go!" "Musharraf is a dog!" and "Long live Nawaz Sharif".
"They have an inalienable right to return and remain in the country as citizens of Pakistan," Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry said in his judgement, referring to the ex-premier and his brother Shahbaz.
Sharif and his family went into exile in Saudi Arabia in 2000, a year after Musharraf ousted the premier and had him sentenced to life in prison on hijacking, tax evasion and treason charges.
Chaudhry added that the pair's "safe return will not be restricted or hampered by the federal governments or provincial governments or any other agencies in any manner."
The verdict piles further pressure on Musharraf, who earlier this month ruled out imposing a state of emergency in his troubled South Asian nation despite political turmoil and a wave of Islamist violence.
"It is a defeat for tyranny and a day of jubilation for the people of Pakistan," Sharif told a local television station from London, where he and his brother are currently staying.
Sharif said he wanted to return to Pakistan "as soon as possible" and that he would call a meeting of his conservative Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party and other allies.
His return could come before Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting which starts in September, senior party member Chaudhry Nisar Ali said outside the Supreme Court in Islamabad.
But the government warned that Sharif - who served as prime minister from 1990 to 1993, and again from 1997 to 1999 - and his brother would face criminal charges if they were to return.
"They can of course come to Pakistan, but when they land the law will take its course," government lawyer Ahmed Raza Kasuri said.
A government spokesman quoted by the official Associated Press of Pakistan said the court's decision would be "taken in its true spirit and action will be taken accordingly."
"We will prove to the world that we abide by the law and constitution and believe in tolerance and fairness. All future steps by the government will be taken in accordance with the law of the land," the spokesman added.
Both Sharif and another former prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, the leader of the rival Pakistan People's Party, have said they intend to contest forthcoming general elections due by early next year.
Then-army chief Musharraf ousted Sharif after tensions between his government and the military. The hijacking charge relates to Sharif's bid to stop Musharraf's plane from landing in Pakistan on the day of the coup.
Musharraf says Sharif agreed to leave Pakistan for a period of 10 years and his lawyers presented the court with a document purportedly outlining the deal, but the ex-premier insists that he was coerced into exile.
The president has said that neither Sharif nor Bhutto will be allowed to return to Pakistan, although Bhutto has held talks with Musharraf about a possible power-sharing deal.
Musharraf has been dealt a series of bruising blows by the Supreme Court in recent months amid plunging popular support.
In July the court foiled his attempt to sack chief justice Chaudhry and earlier this month it ordered the release from jail of one of Sharif's top lieutenants, Javed Hashmi.
Musharraf faces further legal challenges against his dual position as army chief and president. - AFP/de
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