Lawyers long-march's success forces Zardari to take up judges' issue seriously, says partyman
Islamabad, June 16 : Following the success of the lawyers' "long march" which colcuded last week, PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, who was till now turning a blind eye to the judges' issue, is learnt to have taken it seriously and is now mulling over resolving the issue as soon as possible in order to avoid any further public agitation.
An unidentified influential PPP source reportedly said that Zardari is rushing back to Islamabad to review the party's strategy on the issue, reported The News.
According to the paper, the tone and tenor of Zardari House has changed after many acknowledged that a huge number of people had gathered in Islamabad to demand an early restoration of the judges and the trial of President Pervez Musharraf.
Clearly distancing itself from its recent stance that the judges would be restored through a constitutional amendment, the Zardari House is now talking of no linkage between the judges' restoration and the constitutional package, something which had become highly controversial, added the paper.
The PML-N has repeatedly demanded that the deposed judges should not be restored through a constitutional package but through a parliamentary resolution.
Hinting at the early resolution of the judges' issue, the PPP source said that it could be possible soon after the passage of the budget. The restoration of the judges would be done through parliament, but without having any connection with the constitutional package, he added.
The source, however, maintained that the PPP was reviewing its strategy not because of any pressure but because it wanted to move on to address the other problems facing the nation.
Meanwhile, some top PPP leaders, who have been sidelined by the un-elected advisers of Zardari House, are also expected to meet Zardari to influence him to restore the judges through a National Assembly resolution and remove President Pervez Musharraf to avoid political instability and chaos. Otherwise, they fear that it would not only badly damage the party but also the country, added the paper.
ANI