LAHORE, March 3: Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali said here on Monday that the PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto and PML-N leader Mian Nawaz Sharif will have to face courts if they return home.

Talking to reporters at the Aitchison College he said both the former prime ministers were free to return home, but they would be dealt with according to law.

Governor Khalid Maqbool, Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi and Education Minister Mian Imran Masood were also present.

The prime minister said Ms Bhutto had been allowed to leave the country by the then prime minister Mian Nawaz Sharif and the latter by President Pervez Musharraf. The PML-Q government had no role in their exile, he said.

About the recent arrest of some Al Qaeda men, the prime minister said this action should be a warning signal for those wanting to create law and order problem.

Asked whether Pakistan would support or oppose a new resolution on Iraq, the prime minister said so far no decision had been taken on the subject.

The government, he said, was monitoring the situation and would decide after taking parliament into confidence.

In response to a question, Mr Jamali said that the government wanted to have good relations with the MMA and other opposition parties.

Earlier, the prime minister addressed the convocation, directing the Punjab government to ensure quality education to youth.

He said he had come to preside over the convocation knowing well that Aitchisonian Feroz Khan Noon’s rule had come to an end only three days after his visit to the college.

He praised the college saying that important leaders on the political scene were Aitchisonians.

Principal Shamim Saifullah Khan said that over the years the college had improved the standard of its education and extra- curricular activities.

He said the US had given the college $2.7 million in scholarships despite the Sept 11 attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon. Also, he said, Aitchisonians were not denied admission to American universities.

The prime minister also distributed medals, prizes and certificates.