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Dubai: Cracks have widened among the Pakistan government's coalition partners on the issue of the reinstatement of the deposed Supreme Court judges.
The fate of the coalition government also appeared to be hanging in the balance as the foes-turned-friends make a last-ditch attempt to patch up their differences in Dubai on Wednesday.
The chief of the Pakistan Muslim League (N), Nawaz Sharif, dashed to Dubai last night to hold another round of parleys with his coalition partner Asif Ali Zardari, Co-Chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), after his party leaders failed to reach consensus on Monday during a meeting with Zardari.
"Sharif has reached Dubai to meet Zardari as a last-ditch effort to rescue talks which failed on Monday," a senior PML-N leader told Gulf News. All eyes are on the outcome of the talks as they will decide the future of politics in Pakistan as well as the stability of the coalition government.
Zardari came to Dubai on Friday and did not return to Pakistan to finalise the issue, which prompted the PML-N leaders to rush to Dubai for parleys. According to the Murree Declaration signed by the PPP and PML-N last month before forming the coalition government they insist that the judges be reinstated before April 30.
"If not resolved, the situation will once again lead to a political crisis," said analysts.
"We came here with a political will to hold successful negotiations on the issue of judges and the future of Pakistan and I hope the talks bear results," President PML-N Shahbaz Sharif said told reporters.
What next: Lawyers' protest imminent
If talks between the leader of the PPP and PML-N fail today, Nawaz Sharif's party is expected to part ways with the PPP and quit the cabinet. It is likely that they may join the opposition.
Lawyers will launch a mass protest campaign in favour of deposed judges from Thursday if they are not reinstated as planned.
If they reach consensus, the judges will be restored and the president's power to dissolve assemblies will be curtailed, making the prime minister's office the strongest in the country.
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