President Gen Pervez Musharraf, while holding the prevalent circumstances of 2007 as quite different to those of 2004, has vowed to abide by his commitment to the Supreme Court that he will relinquish the post of Chief of Army Staff after his re-election as President.

Comparing the circumstances in 2004, he recalled that there were compelling circumstances and no constitutional bar on his holding two offices, thus he availed the opportunity.

He expressed these views while addressing a distinguished gathering of Pakistanis and foreigners at an Iftar dinner hosted by ISI director-general Lieut-General Ashfaq Kiani in Islamabad on Wednesday night.

The Iftar dinner, which was described as a farewell event hosted by Gen Kiani, surprised observers. Kiani was recently relieved of his charge as the chief of ISI but was not given new assignment triggering speculations he would be named either army chief or chairman of joint chiefs of staff committee.

The President said Pakistan had a great future based on the potential of its people and had no doubts that history would record the past eight years as a defining period in Pakistan’s history where true democracy, freedom of expression and media and economic stability were provided a solid based to stand on and took roots.

It was essential that the entire electoral process, beginning from presidential to general elections proceeded uninterrupted and peacefully, he said. He added, “I am proud to have put the essence of democracy in our national policy by creating a third tier of elected government at the district levels by empowering women, by empowering youth by bringing down the voting age from 21 to 18, the minorities throughout joint electorate, freedom of expression and the liberation of media.”

The Supreme Court today deferred till tomorrow its ruling on petitions challenging the eligibility of President Gen Musharraf to contest the presidential election.

The court adjourned hearing on a tense note after two leading jurists, Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan and Hafeez Pirzada, acting as amicus curiae to assist the court, articulated diametrically opposed interpretation of law and counsels for petitioners claimed right of rebuttal.

Pirzada, who had piloted the 1973 Constitution as law minister of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, stunned the audience by supporting the view that Gen Musharraf was exempted from constitutional disqualifications to contest the election. He argued that the petitions did not involve the violation of fundamental rights and thus could not be entertained. He cited four cases decided by the court saying these had established the principle that the President was exempted from disqualifications laid down in the Constitution.

Advocate Akram Shaikh, senior counsel for petitioner Qazi Hussain Ahmed, said Pirzada was not assisting the court but defending Musharraf as his friend more fiercely than the government counsels. These remarks irked Pirzada who insisted he was only arguing on legal points and not as friend of Musharraf.

Earlier Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan submitted that Gen Musharraf was forcing his way with gun in hand to get elected before shedding uniform. He said the army chief was not qualified to contest the election but Musharraf was trying to intimidate the electorate saying first it should elect him before he quits the army post.

New York, September 27
A grand jury has filed an indictment against Umair Ahmed, a 17-year-old schoolboy, for forcibly cutting a 15-year-old Sikh boy’s hair in a school at Queens borough here.

Ahmed faces nine charges, including coercion.

Michael Brovner, assistant district attorney of Queens, said, “The indictment was filed of all the original five charges and four additional charges of hate crimes. The defendant will be arraigned within the next few weeks.”

The case will now proceed to trial, said Tejinder Singh, legal adviser of United Sikhs, a New York- based organisation representing the victim, whose identity has not been revealed.

“The case stems from an incident on May 24 in Newtown High School in Elmhurst,” Kuldeep Singh, United Sikhs’ director, told IANS.

Detective Delvalle deposed that Ahmed threatened to beat up the Sikh boy and took him to the bathroom. Under duress, he forced the victim to remove his turban and cut his waist length hair to the neckline with a pair of scissors.

Inder J. Singh, a professor at New York University and scholar of Sikhism, testified before the jury on the religious significance of unshorn hair for Sikhs.

The 16-member jury also indicted Ahmed for unlawful imprisonment, aggravated harassment and criminal possession of a weapon.

After the school authorities said they could not guarantee the Sikh boy’s safety, he was transferred to another school, according to United Sikhs. — IANS

London, September 27
Britain will champion the cause of India being given a permanent seat in an expanded United Nations Security Council, foreign secretary David Miliband has said.
In the BBC’s Newsnight programme, Miliband said he would raise the issue in his speech to the UN General Assembly later this week.

He said the expansion and reform of the UN Security Council was long-delayed and indicated that he would canvass for India, Brazil, Japan and South Africa to be made permanent members of the council.

“I think it’s perfectly legitimate for you to say Britain is a privileged member of the UN as a result of our membership of the Security Council. I think others have got a strong claim to join us there.” He said, “We think, very clearly, that the South Africas of this world, the Japans of this world, the Brazils of this world, the Indias of this world, have a very clear claim, and we will be arguing for UN reform,” Miliband said.

His speech would focus on “global inequalities” and argue that “one of the inequalities is about power,” Miliband said. Bringing emerging powers like India on to the Security Council would be one way of removing such inequalities. — PTI 

Kathmandu, September 27
Nepal’s national bank today issued new currency notes of Rs 500 denominations without the King’s name, image or any royal sign, in another symbolic downslide for the country’s embattled monarchy.

In the new notes, the world’s highest peak, Mt Everest, has replaced the King’s image and the picture of the national flower, Rhododendron, has been printed in the place of the previous watermark of the crown.

“This is for the first time in the history of Nepal the paper note has been printed without any symbol of the monarch, his name or picture,” an official at the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) said. The NRB had issued new two-rupee coin without the King’s name and any royal symbol for the first time in the country’s history on September 5. — PTI 

Washington, September 27
Former Pakistan Premier Benazir Bhutto has said the next few days will indicate whether a political solution has been worked out with President Pervez Musharraf while signalling intention to chalk out a joint strategy for restoration of democracy with an opposition alliance floated by exiled leader Nawaz Sharif.

“We want a level playing field. We don’t want to go into the 2007 elections and find that more members of our party are factionalised, regulated, threatened and intimidated. People of Pakistan want to see a revival of our constitution”, Bhutto said at the Middle East Institute.

“Both sides have spent a lot of time trying to find a solution, but despite our best intentions whether we get one or don’t get that will be determined in the next few days”, she said.

Favours peace treaty with India

Washington, September 27
Benazir Bhutto has said that she wanted to see a treaty between India and Pakistan in the 60th year of their Independence that “promises” peace for the coming 
generations.

“In the 60th year of Pakistan and India’s independence, we would like to see the two countries come to a treaty that can promise peace for the coming generations,” Bhutto said during a press conference at the Middle East Institute here.

She supported the composite dialogue currently under way between the two countries. — PTI