Former Pakistani PM says deposed judges to be restored

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(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-08-22 19:31

ISLAMABAD -- Former Pakistani Prime Minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif Friday said the deposed judges would be restored next Wednesday.

Addressing a news conference here, Sharif said a resolution aimed at restoring around 60 deposed judges would be tabled in the National Assembly next Monday and debated on Tuesday.

It would be approved and the judges would be restored until Wednesday, Sharif said.

Private TV channel Geo quoted Sharif as saying that there was a written deal with Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari that the judges would be restored within 24 hours after Musharraf's resignation but it could not happen.

Sharif met with Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Awami National Party (ANP) President Asfandyar Wali Khan in Punjab here on Friday.

As part of the coalition, the ANP and the JUI-F on Wednesday were tasked to prepare recommendations for the restoration of deposed judges.

After winning the general elections in February, the PPP and PML-N agreed to form a coalition government and restore the judges who were sacked on November 3 last year when then-President Pervez Musharraf declared a state of emergency.

However, the PPP failed to honor its commitment to reinstate the judges within 30 days since the formation of the new government according to their agreement with the PML-N.

The two parties failed to reach a consensus on how these judges would be restored despite several rounds of talks. The PML-N pulled its ministers out of the cabinet in May.

The PPP prefers to restore the judges through a constitutional package, which will reportedly put some limits on the tenure of Chief Justice. However, the PML-N insists that they should be restored through an executive order.