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| Benazir has no right to ask me to resign: Musharraf |
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Wednesday, November 14, 2007
ISLAMABAD: President General Pervez Musharraf on Tuesday sternly cautioned that Chairperson Pakistan People’s Party Benazir Bhutto has no right to demand his resignation.
While giving an interview to an American newspaper, Musharraf criticised the former prime minister for her confrontational politics, which was making it difficult for him to coordinate with her.
Currently Benazir was under house arrest, ostensibly to avoid serious hazards, because of accusing the Punjab chief minister for plotting against her, thus preventing any untoward incident, which might put the blame on the government.
He also brushed aside Benazir’s claim about her much touted popularity, citing the forthcoming general elections as a definitive bench mark for her claims, and proceeded to question the validity of her being the prime minister for the third time, since that was constitutionally impossible which caters for two terms for the office.
Musharraf vigorously defended his declaration of emergency, insisting and ensuring that it would in no way affect holding of the general elections according to schedule. He also defended the decree issued 10 days ago which scrapped up the constitution, dismissed the Supreme Court, and arrested a massive numbers of opposition leaders, lawyers, and human rights advocates.
He brushed aside demands by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to lift the emergency rule, which he asserted was to ensure the proper scheduling of the general elections, and refused to set a time for its removal.
President Musharraf elaborated that emergency had to be promulgated, because the Supreme Court had meddled in the politics, especially with his re-election process, besides the very rampant terrorist threat.
He also refused to give a definite time for stepping down, doffing his uniform to become a civilian president, despite oft-repeated calls, even private and personal ones by US President Bush.
He also berated the recently re-arrested Human rights advocate, Asma Jehangir, for disturbing the peace by her overactive agitations, calling her as an “unbalanced character”. Defending his recent temporary ban on media, with over half a dozen private TV channels closed, he said that he would only lift the ban, if these channels agreed to abide by the government’s code of conduct. He also advocated the right of Pakistani women to deserve better opportunities, citing his own legislation that amended the laws to protect accusations of rape and adultery.
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Three killed as Sh Rashid escapes attempt on life
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Plea to freeze foreign accounts
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Attack on Sh Rashid
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Indian forces to halt Kashmir rally outside UN office
HELD SRINAGAR: The held Kashmir authorities deployed thousands of police and troops on Monday to prevent a protest outside the UN office here over the recent killing of two teenage boys by Indian security force more |
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briefs...
20 die in Afghan floods, avalanches
KANDAHAR: Twenty people have died in floods and avalanches triggered by some of the heaviest rain and snow in Afghanistan for 50 years, an official said on Monday. At more |
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ISSN 1563-9479 
