Pakistan court bans Nawaz Sharif from elective office

Pakistan, which over the last 18 months has seen a grass-roots uprising against longtime military leader Pervez Musharraf, the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and the advent of civilian rule, appears ill prepared for another prolonged period of political turmoil. Islamic insurgents are gaining strength, and the economy is virtually on life support from international lenders.

Analysts characterized Wednesday's court's ruling as a drawing of battle lines between Zardari's Pakistan People's Party and its onetime ally, Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-N. The two parties teamed up last February to take on Musharraf, soundly defeating his party in parliamentary elections and ousting him from office six months later. But having gained power, they fell out with each other.

Sharif's supporters angrily protested Wednesday's verdict, saying they do not recognize the legitimacy of the high court. They repeated demands for the reinstatement of the former chief justice and other senior judges dismissed by Musharraf in late 2007 during a bout of de facto martial law.

"This is a mockery of justice, a mockery of democracy," Ahsan Iqbal, a senior leader of Sharif's party, said of the ruling. "This decision has once again pushed Pakistan on the path of political confrontation and political instability."

The former prime minister's brother, Shahbaz Sharif, also was disqualified by the high court from holding office, in effect removing him from his position as chief minister of Punjab, the country's most populous and affluent province.

Supporters of the Sharifs poured into the streets of major cities, burning tires and chanting anti-government slogans. No serious violence was reported.

A firebrand populist, Sharif returned to Pakistan in late 2007 after seven years in exile, foiling efforts by Musharraf to keep him away. Although Sharif's party trailed the Pakistan People's Party in last February's vote, some commentators attributed that to sympathy over the assassination seven weeks earlier of Bhutto, Zardari's wife. Most public opinion polls suggest Sharif's popularity has now eclipsed Zardari's.