LONDON, March 12: Taking a tough stand on the suspension of Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif termed it an illegal, unconstitutional, uncalled for, unethical and immoral action.

Speaking at a press conference at the PML-N international headquarters here on Monday, Mr Sharif said elections had become secondary to this development as this `incident impacts on the very survival of Pakistan’.

He further said that one of the items on the agenda of the multi-party conference his Muslim League was going to hold was to ensure a fearless judiciary. This incident has made this agenda item even more important.

Mr Sharif said he was glad that the CJ had refused to resign and extended his and his party’s full support to the ongoing struggle of lawyers against what he called the “highhanded decision of President Pervez Musharraf”.

He called upon his party leaders and workers in Pakistan to extend their support to the ongoing protest of the civil society led by lawyers and judges.

Recalling his own attitude towards higher judiciary when he was prime minister, Mr Sharif said he had appeared before the Superior Court when summoned by it and did not summon the CJ to his office secretariat as had been done by Gen Musharraf .

Referring to the removal of Gen Musharraf from the post of COAS, he said he had acted in accordance with the constitution when he replaced one COAS with another.

He said the judicial activism of Justice Chaudhry was aimed at protecting and promoting the independence of judiciary.

He described Gen Musharraf as an impulsive and erratic person and according to him the latest action had further tarnished the image of Pakistan and had the potential of threatening the very existence of the country.

Terming the present crisis in the country as the ‘defining moment’, he called upon all the well-wishers of the country, the political parties, intellectuals, the media and the civil society to join hands to bring the present system led by the army junta to an end.

He said he had talked to Justice Chaudhry’s son and assured him of his party’s and his own personal support to the cause for which his father was being made to suffer humiliation.