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Pak SC orders arrest of PM in graft case In a dramatic move that plunged the country into another phase of instability and uncertainty, the Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the arrest of Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf for allegedly receiving bribes in power projects. The court headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry also ordered the arrest of 15 others, including former finance minister Shaukat Tareen, finance secretary Siddiq Salman and top officials involved in the grant of contracts for rental power plants. It set a 24-hour deadline for authorities to implement its arrest orders that may cost a second Prime Minister to lose office in less than a year. Ashraf, 62, who became PM after the exit of Yousuf Raza Gilani last June, has been accused of receiving kickbacks and commission in the Rental Power Projects (RPPs) case as federal minister for water and power. Gilani had to quit in the midst of a raging battle with the Supreme Court over his refusal to write to Swiss authorities to reopen graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari there. After Ashraf assumed power, the government wrote to the Swiss authorities. It is not clear as to what will be the political fallout of the court's order against Ashraf as this is probably the first case of an incumbent Prime Minister being ordered to be arrested in a graft case. It remains to be seen whether the ruling PPP will elect a new leader to replace Ashraf.The court directed the chairman of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), the country's main anti-corruption agency, Admiral Fasih Iqbal to ensure the arrest of all 16 persons in 24 hours and said the Bureau would be responsible if any of the respondents left the country. Tens of thousands of Minhajul Quran International (MQI) chief Tahirul Qadri's supporters who gathered at a square near Parliament here erupted in cheers as the cleric announced the apex court had ordered the arrest of Ashraf. Analysts and politicians who believe that Qadri has the backing of the establishment tried to link the court order with his march. Legal experts such as eminent lawyer and PPP leader Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan maintained that Raja would continue to be Prime Minister even if he was arrested. It was further reported that he was seeking legal opinion on his options that included seeking bail. Ahsan and Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl concurred that there may be a link between the march and the court order. “The timing of the court order is such that one is intrigued to believe that it was just coincidental,” Ahsan said. Both Ahsan and Fazl also agreed that the Pakistan People’s Party could benefit from the order in the next elections by projecting itself as victim of establishment’s manipulations. Media reports said President Asif Ali Zardari, who has been staying in Karachi for the last one month, had called an urgent meeting of senior party leaders and coalition partners to discuss the implications of the court order. Ashraf was given the title of ‘Raja Rental’ after he was accused of receiving kickbacks in the rental power projects case. He has been defending himself in the SC. The case hearing has been continuing for nearly six months, but the court was annoyed to learn in the previous hearing that the government had misused its observations to remove independent investigators from probing the case. (With PTI inputs) ‘Raja Rental’ Ashraf (in pic) was Power Minister when contracts were signed for several rental power projects, which were part of the PPP-led government's strategy to overcome a crippling energy shortage. Ashraf was given the title of 'Raja Rental' after he was accused of receiving kickbacks in the rental power projects Qadri UPS ante
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