Pakistan PM to face contempt charges
Pakistan’s Supreme Court has vowed to charge the prime minister with contempt for his failure to reopen an old corruption case against the president.
The move deepens a destabilising political crisis just as Washington seeks to rebuild a troubled anti-terror alliance with the country.
If convicted, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani could face six months in prison and the loss of his job.
The court in Islamabad ordered Gilani to appear before it on January 13, when he will be charged.
The announcement was a major escalation in a case that has dogged the democratically elected government since 2009, when the Supreme Court ordered it write to Swiss authorities requesting they reopen a corruption case against President Asif Ali Zardar that dates to the late 1990s.
The government has refused, claiming the president enjoys immunity from prosecution while in office.
In early January, the judges threatened to hold Gilani in contempt if he did not write the letter, and ordered him to make a rare appearance before the court to plead his case.
Gilani’s lawyer, Aitzaz Ahsan, agreed to argue the issue of the president’s immunity when the hearing resumed. The government previously insisted presidential immunity was a right, and therefore did not need to be debated in court.
But Ahsan later appeared to do a U-turn, refusing to specifically address the issue of presidential immunity.
Instead, he simply argued that Gilani should not be held in contempt because his lawyers advised him he did not have to send the letter. The judges did not accept that, and after five-hours of debate, said Gilani would be charged.
Ahsan said he would advise Gilani to appeal, something that could draw out the proceedings further.
A defendant has the right to appeal in a contempt case in Pakistan even before a trial begins.
Government supporters say the court is trying to oust Zardari because of enmity between the president and the chief justice.
They also claim the case cannot be separated from tensions between the government and the army, which has carried out three coups in the country’s history. In those cases, the Supreme Court either stood by or legitimised the actions.
The court has also ordered an inquiry into a secret memo scandal that is also threatening Zardari.
The memo was allegedly sent to Washington by the government last year asking for help in stopping a supposed military coup. The government has denied the allegations.
