Constitution will decide Musharraf's fate: Pak PM

Pakistan premier Yousuf Raza Gillani on Wednesday said that the fate of President Pervez Musharraf would be decided according to the Constitution while the judges deposed by him will be reinstated in the true spirit of an agreement reached between the Pakistan People's Party and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz in this regard.

"We will do everything according to the Constitution of Pakistan," Gillani told reporters in Lahore after a meeting with PML-N chief and former premier Nawaz Sharif, when asked about the nature of his government's relationship with Musharraf and the President's future.

Gillani, who belongs to the PPP, called on Sharif and his brother Shahbaz at their Raiwind estate in Lahore after addressing a business meet. Punjab Chief Minister Dost Muhammad Khosa was also present at the meeting.

The Prime Minister said the deposed judges would be reinstated in the true spirit of the agreement between the PPP and the PML-N for forming the government. The accord envisages the restoration of the judges within 30 days of the formation of the government.

The top leaders of the ruling coalition PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, PML-N chief Sharif and Awami National Party leader Asfandyar Wali Khan could not finalise a formula to reinstate the judges during a meeting held in Islamabad on Tuesday.

Media reports suggested that the PPP proposed at the meeting that the tenure of the chief justices of the Supreme Court and provincial High Courts should be limited to three to four years. Sharif said he would respond to the proposal after consulting his party, sources said.

The ruling coalition has also decided that the judges who endorsed the emergency in 2002 and 2007 would not be considered for appointment to any constitutional posts after their retirement, the sources said.

Gillani also pointed out that his government had inherited the shortages of power and flour from the previous administration. "These problems are affecting the whole country. If protests were organised (against load shedding) in Multan (on Monday), the reason is because the Prime Minister is from Multan," he said.

 "We are passing through a difficult juncture and the coalition partners appeal to the people to remain peaceful. With their cooperation, we will overcome these crises," he said. "We want stability all across the country. We believe if there is political stability, economic stability will come to Pakistan."