Munizae Jehangir
NDTV.Com Monday, May 21, 2007 (Islamabad)
The sacking of Pakistan Chief Justice Iftikar Chaudhury has literally polarised the country into two camps.
The country has been divided into those who are against the sacking and those who support President Pervez Musharraf.
The irony is hard to miss - the same judge, who took a fresh oath of office under a military ruler when several of his colleagues resigned in protest, is now the face of a movement against the President.
The Chief Justice has been demanding an end to dictatorship and a return to civilian rule. And as the pressure on him mounts, a beleaguered President has launched his own defense.
''He was seen to use his influence in a belated manner to seek promotion of his son to a grade 18 post, which of course was neither warranted nor permissible,'' said Dr Khalid Ranjha, prosecuting lawyer for the government.
Independent decisions
The consensus among Musharraf's opponents is that the judge's independence angered the government.
He ruled against the privatization of steel mills, after the opposition accused the Musharraf government of corruption.
He took a very hard line against the Pakistani intelligence for illegally detaining hundreds of people under the anti terrorism act, and failing to produce them in court.
They also suggest that Musharraf's real aim is to try and amend the Constitution that allows him to retain two posts - that of army chief and president - only until the elections this year. ''This is a very sensitive year for Musharraf because his term is supposed to come to an end on the 15th of November and he desperately wants to get another five years. There will be very serious Constitutional questions, which will be raised this year,'' argues Hamid Khan, Defense lawyer for Chaudhury.
United stand
The fight between the legal community and the executive has taken the shape of a national movement for democracy.
Opposition parties previously divided over many issues, have come together under one umbrella to fight against military rule.
>From recent reports, it seems clear that the pressure on Musharraf to give
up his uniform and fight the presidential election as a civilian, if he
wants to stay in power, is at boiling point.
And demands for Pakistan's exiled politicians Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif to get back in time for the elections are growing more urgent. But both the leaders have reacted by saying they will be back in time for the elections.
To make things worse for Musharraf, Bhutto has said that she can't even think of a deal with the military government after last week's violence in Karachi, ending speculation of a possible alliance between Musharraf and her for now.
But Musharraf's growing unpopularity means he is likely to be under pressure from his political allies to work something out and the only real option is with Bhutto's PPP.
''I think he is trying to hold out an olive branch to Bhutto. In return he probably wants to be re-elected for five years in uniform as Chief Of Army Staff. Bhutto wanted her cases withdrawn, that the government has not agreed to.
''He has agreed not to prosecute them, but I think the government has not agreed to withdraw the cases and therefore deal as such is probably not happening. But I think both need each other,'' said Rashid Rehman, Editor, The Post.
Edmund Burke once said in politics there are no permanent friends, no permanent enemies, just permanent interests. In the last few years, Benazir and Nawaz - the two arch rivals - have come together under one umbrella.
The course of action that the PPP will take in the next few months, will define the course of politics in Pakistan for years to come.
http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20070012766
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