Pakistan Supreme Court disqualifies PM Gilani

Pakistan Supreme Court(SC) today disqualified Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in a stunning move likely to throw the country into fresh turmoil two months after the premier was convicted of contempt. The supreme court on April 26 convicted Gilani for refusing to ask Swiss authorities to reopen corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari in a highly politicised case. Under the constitution, anyone convicted of defaming or ridiculing the judiciary is barred from being an MP.
Gilani was convicted in April for refusing to open a corruption probe against his boss, President Asif Ali Zardari. He has been refusing to step down. The Supreme Court ruling came in response to petitions filed against Gilani for not standing down after that conviction. Party supporters have said that they believe they have the support in parliament to elect a new prime minister in the event of Gilani's disqualification.But senior opposition politicians, including cricket legend Imran Khan and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, challenged the ruling. The allegations against Zardari date back to the 1990s, when he and his late wife, former premier Benazir Bhutto, are suspected of using Swiss bank accounts to launder about $12 million allegedly paid in bribes by companies seeking customs inspection contracts. The Swiss shelved the cases in 2008 when Zardari became president.