The Pakistan Supreme Court has issued a show-cause notice to Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf over his failure to implement its directive of writing to Swiss authorities to reopen graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari.
“We hereby issue a notice to Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf...to show cause why he may not be proceeded against for committing contempt,” the court was quoted as saying in its short order.
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Earlier on Tuesday, the Pakistan People’s Party had decided it would not write to Swiss authorities and would ‘resist’ actions by the Supreme Court within the bounds of the Constitution.
According to inside sources, PPP leaders were hopeful that Ashraf would survive for two to three months even if the apex court ordered his removal.
Ashraf was elected as the premier after the court, on June 19, dismissed Yousuf Raza Gilani as PM after convicting him of contempt in April for refusing to reopen the multi-million-dollar case against Zardari.