| |
| |
![]() |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
ISLAMABAD : Pakistan faced a new political crisis on Tuesday after the party of former premier Nawaz Sharif vowed to quit the cabinet because of differences over the reinstatement of sacked judges.
Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) said its nine ministers would leave the six-week-old government after the coalition missed a Monday deadline to reinstate the judges sacked by President Pervez Musharraf last year.
"The PML-N ministers will submit their resignations to the prime minister at 1:00 pm (0800 GMT)," party spokesman Siddiqul Farooq told AFP.
The move is likely to trigger political uncertainty, although Sharif insisted at a news conference on Monday that his party would continue to support the government of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.
The Pakistan People's Party (PPP) of slain ex-premier Benazir Bhutto, the senior partner in the coalition that swept into power following February 18 general elections, said it hoped the ministers would soon return to government.
Even if Sharif pulls out of the coalition, the PPP-led administration can survive with the support of smaller parties including Musharraf's allies, party sources said.
Musharraf, who came to power following a coup in 1999, deposed chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and dozens of other judges in November when it appeared they might overturn his re-election as president the month before.
The judges were also to rule on a decree issued by Musharraf granting amnesty to political leaders charged with corruption. PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, Bhutto's widower, himself is a beneficiary of the law.
The eventual reinstatement of the judges is likely to cause a major headache for embattled former army chief Musharraf, a key US ally, who considers them hostile to his rule.
Sharif and Zardari agreed in March to restore the judges, but differences quickly arose over how to put them back on the bench.
A series of crunch talks between the two sides failed to resolve the stalemate.
"We have no differences with the PML-N over the restoration of the judiciary. The only point of disagreement is the method of restoration," Information Minister Sherry Rehman said in a statement.
"They have taken the decision in line with their pledge to step aside if the judges' issue was not resolved on time. This is their democratic right and we respect this," Rehman said, stressing that the PPP was open to further talks.
The cabinet posts left vacant by the PML-N members will not be filled, she added.
- AFP /ls
|
