ISLAMABAD, Aug 27: Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf today reached Pakistan’s Supreme Court to face a charge of contempt of court for refusing to reopen graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari, the second premier to be summoned by the court on the same ground.
Ashraf was driven to the main entrance of the apex court in a SUV shortly after 9 am.
Several federal ministers, including Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira and Interior Minister Rehman Malik, and leaders of the ruling coalition arrived in the court earlier to appear alongside the premier as a show of solidarity.
The premier will appear before a five-judge bench headed by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa to respond to a contempt of court charge for refusing to revive the graft cases against the President in Switzerland.
Both Kaira and Malik told reporters outside the court that the premier was appearing in the court as the ruling Pakistan People’s Party had always respected the judiciary despite decisions that had gone against the party, including the “judicial murder” of PPP founder Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.
The two ministers further said they expected justice from the Supreme Court.
In June, the apex court disqualified Ashraf’s predecessor, Yousuf Raza Gilani, after convicting him of contempt for not acting on repeated orders to revive the corruption cases against Zardari.
Legal experts have said Ashraf could face the same fate as Gilani.
A meeting of leaders of the ruling coalition chaired by Zardari late last night decided that the premier would appear in court despite reservations expressed by several top PPP leaders. (PTI)
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