Pakistani Court Bars Sharif Brothers From Office
By VOA News
25 February 2009
Pakistan's Supreme Court maintained a ban that prevents opposition leader Nawaz Sharif from seeking elected office.
The court Wednesday dismissed legal appeals filed by the former prime minister, effectively declaring he cannot hold a political post.
The Supreme Court Wednesday also nullified last year's election of Mr. Sharif's brother, Shahbaz, to the post of chief minister of Punjab province. Wednesday's court decision forces him to resign from office.
The ruling against top leaders of the country's main opposition party, Pakistan Muslim League-N, outraged supporters and activists. Angry protesters took to the streets in several cities, including the capital, Islamabad, and set tires on fire to block roads. They accused President Asif Ali Zardari of influencing the nation's courts.
A lower court in Lahore had previously barred Nawaz Sharif from participating in elections because of criminal convictions related to the 1999 military coup that removed him from power.
The government had appealed that lower court ruling, which led to Wednesday's Supreme Court decision.
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