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Sharifs soften stance against Musharraf trial under Saudi pressure

September 7, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Islamabad, Sep 7 (ANI): The Sharif brothers and top leadership of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) are believed to have softened their demand for the trial of former President Pervez Musharraf owing to international pressure by his guarantors, including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Well-placed party sources said that the PML-N central leadership would take the party hierarchy into confidence about the pressure for softening their anti-Musharraf stance and to chalk out the party’s new plan of action to prepare it for next elections at party’s scheduled CEC meeting in Murree on Monday.

Sources attach great importance to Nawaz Sharif’s visit to Saudi Arabia in next few days where apart from performing Umrah he is expected to meet the Saudi high-ups in the backdrop of Musharraf’s recent visit to the Kingdom and his meeting with the King Abdullah.

The Nation quoted sources as saying that Saudi authorities have already conveyed to the Sharifs to take soft stance on Musharraf’s trial as the Kingdom regards him needy for help and cooperation as they were while out of power.

The meeting, sources further said, would discuss and evolve a comprehensive strategy to hold party’s elections but after pushing it through an intense process of restructuring and reorganization at grass root level in all parts of the country.

The CEC meeting would decide about the election timeframe either by the end of this year or early next year.

The meeting would also take host of political issues for consideration including PML-N, PPP relations, law and order situation in Balochistan, fate of Local Bodies and implementation of Charter of Democracy by the PPP-led coalition government, they added. (ANI)

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Nawaz Sharif’s mantra to make traffic jams history!

August 22, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Islamabad, Aug.22 (ANI): Things can be sorted out with amazing ease in Pakistan by just making a call to the higher authorities, but yes, for raising a storm in the country’s officialdom one needs to possess power. The more the power one has, the sooner his voice is heard in the country.

This was proved recently when former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family were stuck in a traffic jam on bridge connecting Murree and Patriata in the Punjab province.

Angered by the inadequate ‘arrangements’ made for his movement, Sharif called the chief secretary of the province, who in turn sent his subordinates to clear the traffic jam. After that things moved with astonishing speed on that stretch of the road.

A day later nearly 30 traffic officials were suspended for dereliction of duty and failing to provide smooth passage to the former premier, who also happens to be chief minister’s elder brother.

According to a Dawn editorial, it is the kind of influence that the PML-N chief exerts in the world of politics and officialdom.

Without that influence, Sharif’s car would have been stuck indefinitely in the traffic mess, the editorial said.

The editorial warned that the ‘bloody revolution’ that Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif often warns of, may indeed be witnessed if the powerful continue to flaunt their influence and ordinary citizens continue seething inside with anger.

Shahbaz Sharif should see that this trend doesn’t continues for long and empower ordinary citizens so that their voice can be heard too, it concluded. (ANI)

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Zardari says he was waiting for Dogar’s retirement to reinstate Chaudhry

March 17, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Islamabad, Mar 17 (ANI): President Asif Ali Zardari has said that he was only waiting for the retirement of present Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar before restoring Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry as the country’s Chief Justice.

“I never said that I am against Justice Iftikhar. I was only waiting for the retirement of Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, who took oath as the Chief Justice in the Musharraf regime. Dogar will retire on March 21 and Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry will become the chief justice again in his place,” Zardari said.

“I had made it clear on March 9, 2008 after signing the Murree Declaration that no sitting judge would be disturbed. I said it in the presence of Nawaz Sharif to the media and that was why I never disturbed Dogar,” The News quoted him, as saying.

“It was a small thing, but this small thing exposed many big people,” he said.

Zardari was more concerned about some people from his own party who resigned from their ministries last week rather than his political brother Nawaz Sharif.

Zardari said the political crisis was over, but Pakistan was still facing an economic crisis and terrorism.

Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry was twice removed in the last two years was restored twice. It’s a record in the world judicial and legal history.

His first removal resulted in the launching of a movement for the independence of the judiciary, which was initiated by the lawyers, the media and the civil society. The political parties later joined this movement. (ANI)

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Pak steered out of turmoil for the moment

March 16, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Islamabad, Mar 16 (ANI): Intense and hard negotiation backed by major foreign powers led to reconciliation, steering Pakistan out of the turmoil and changing the charged up political atmosphere ahead of the lawyers ‘Long March’.

Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani’s announcement regarding reinstatement of the deposed judges of the Supreme Court, doing away with February 25 actions and the road map to implement Charter of Democracy (CoD) defused the crises.

The move would go long way in Pakistan’s political history and definitely help promote stability in the country on one hand and strengthening of country’s justice system, democracy and the national economy on the other.

Though it is premature to give any objective assessment about the modalities of reinstatement of the deposed judges, particularly the Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and implementing CoD, ostensibly it looks certain that apart from the Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani some major foreign powers had played crucial role in securing the deal.

This is significant in relation to Pakistan’s future role in the war on terror in line with US strategy, The Nation reports However, it was still not clear about the fate of former President Pervez Musharraf’s pre-November 3, 2007 actions pertaining to second emergency he imposed under a constitutional cover.

Moreover, the political pundits are of the view that the PML-N would most likely rejoin the ruling coalition at the Centre and PPP-PML-N government in Punjab.

The PML-N had left the federal cabinet last year as mark of protest over the PPP failure to implement the Murree Accord signed by the two parties for reinstatement of deposed judges sacked by General (Retd) Pervez Musharraf.

The political pundits were of the view that the move would pave way for the appointment of non-controversial governor at the most populated Punjab province, the paper says They believed that lawyers Long March supported by the PML-N and other opposition parties might have resulted into a bloody showdown with the PPP-led coalition government had the reconciliation efforts failed. (ANI)

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Sharif demands FIR against Benazir’s killers

March 9, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Faisalabad, Mar 8 (ANI): Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz chief Nawaz Sharif has demanded that the government should immediately register an FIR in connection with the assassination of Benazir Bhutto and arrest the accused in the case.

Addressing a public meeting at the Iqbal Park here, he said despite the passage of more than one year, the ruling party has registered no FIR.

After the end of the lawyers’ long march, he said, the PML-N would stage rallies for the arrest of Benazir Bhutto’s killers.

He denied the involvement of PML-N workers in vandalising the memorial of Benazir Bhutto, and asked the PPP workers to take out a rally along with him for unearthing the assassins of Benazir Bhutto.

Sharif called upon workers of all political parties, especially the PPP, to participate in the long march, The News reported.

He said the PML-N fully supported the just cause of lawyers for the restoration of the deposed judges and Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.

He said political workers could play a decisive role at this critical juncture to bring true and lasting democracy in the country.

The PML-N leader said that he had signed an agreement with slain PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto for the restoration of democracy and all the deposed judges, and that Benazir had announced at her public meetings in Karachi and Rawalpindi that she herself would hoist the Pakistani flag at the residence of the deposed chief justice.

Before assuming power, he said, President Asif Ali Zardari also signed the agreement on March 9 at Murree and then on August 5 in Dubai and on August 7 in London, pledging that both the PPP and PML-N leaders would honour the agreements and restore the deposed judges within 24 hours.

He said the PML-N was still sticking to the agreements, President Zardari had betrayed them. “Nawaz Sharif is made in Pakistan” who would live and die for Pakistan, he said.

If President Zardari announced the restoration of all the judges, he said, he would not claim anything more from him during the remaining tenure of four years. (ANI)

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Sharif says he won’t demand anything from Govt. if judges are reinstated

February 25, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Lahore, Feb. 25 (ANI): Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif has said that he won’t demand anything from the government in the next five years if President Asif Ali Zardari reinstates all sacked judges.

“I don’t want to become premier or president, but want reinstatement of all sacked judges according to the signed agreement (Murree Accord),” the Daily Times quoted Sharif, as saying.

Speaking with PML-N leaders from Sindh and Balochistan, the PML-N chief said several committees had been established throughout the country to make next month’s lawyers’ long march successful.

He also urged the people of Pakistan to come out of their houses to support a free judiciary.

Sharif said the long march was not intended as a “terrorist act”.

In a separate meeting with a delegation from the European parliament, Sharif urged them to support Pakistan in the peace process. The 11-member delegation included Labor Member of European Parliament for London, Robert Evans. (ANI)

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Sharif to campaign in Sindh despite Murree declaration

January 21, 2009 By Rajesh Leave a Comment

Karachi, Jan 21 (ANI): PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif has decided to tour the PPP’s strongholds in Sindh in February, setting aside an understanding reached under the Murree Declaration that the later would not interfere in the political matters of Punjab, while the former would keep itself away from the political matters of Sindh.

Sharif has decided to tour Sindh in the first week of February in connection with the party’s political campaign, sources said.

They said the PML-N developed grievances over the judges’ issue and the PPP’s style of politics in Punjab, and believe that the PPP is directly interfering in political matters of the state.

Earlier, Sharif had delivered a telephonic address at a huge rally in Rahuka in Badin district of Sindh, The News reported.

Political advisers have told Sharif that the reunification of different factions of Muslim League was not possible till he toured Sindh.

Sources said there were bright chances that Sharif would also meet political leaders in Sindh, including Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F) chief Pir Pagaro.

It may be noted that the PML-N has also presented a bill to repeal the 17th Amendment in National Assembly, besides pressing their demand for an independent judiciary and the reinstatement of judges, including deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry.

Sharif has already announced that he would attend the lawyers’ long march on March 9, while Adviser to Prime Minister on Interior Affairs Rehman Malik has requested him to reconsider the decision.

PML-N sources said that elaborate arrangements would be made to accord a rousing welcome to Sharif in Sindh. It may be noted that there is a rift within the ranks of PML-N Sindh because of which none of the party’s central leaders have visited Sindh, including Karachi. (ANI)

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