Pak: Musharraf rules out declaring emergency

Islamabad, May 13: Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf today ruled out declaring a state of emergency, hours after 27 people were killed and 100 wounded in clashes in Karachi between pro-government and opposition supporters.

Speculation has swirled in the past few weeks that General Musharraf, who came to power in a bloodless military coup in 1999, might resort to imposing an emergency due to mounting opposition to his attempt to fire the country's top judge.

''There is talk that emergency is being imposed... the people, this crowd of tens of thousands is with me, then where does the need for emergency come? People are with me there is no emergency,'' Musharraf told a mass rally in Islamabad.

Reuters>