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Islamabad: The government on Thursday invited the judges deposed by President Pervez Musharraf last year to take fresh oath under the constitution and resume their role in the judiciary.
Law Minister Farooq H. Naek made the offer while talking to reporters here, as lawyers in different cities staged weekly protests as part of their movement for the restoration of the dozens of sacked judges.
The minister said the judges taking a fresh oath would get back all benefits and their seniority would also be maintained.
"They are welcome to come back to the judiciary and take oath under the constitution," the minister said. Naek said that the judges, who had taken oath under Musharraf's provisional constitution order (PCO) of November 3, 2007 had later taken oath under the 3rd schedule of the constitution when the PCO was revoked after six weeks.
Bar associations and the deposed judges have already rejected the new oath offer because its acceptance would amount to validation of the emergency rule under which Musharraf carried out the judicial purge. Deposed chief justice, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry addressed lawyers at the Sindh High Court bar association in Karachi on Wednesday, calling upon them to remain united and steadfast.
Deadline
The lawyer community has set August 14 as deadline for the reinstatement of the judges, warning of a mass campaign if the demand was ignored. Former chief of the Sindh High Court Sabihuddin Ahmad said the offer of fresh oath was meant to breach the unity of the deposed judges.
He said the refusal to take a new oath was a conscious decision and the judges were proud of it.
The judges' row has strained relations between the ruling coalition leader, the Pakistan Peoples Party, and its major ally, the Pakistan Muslim League-N of former premier Nawaz Sharif. Sharif has said he plans to have a final word with PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari on key issues, including the non-reinstatement of the judges.
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