WASHINGTON, Aug 18: A leading US newspaper, Boston Globe, urged the Bush administration on Saturday to help evolve a democratic set-up in Pakistan instead of supporting a particular party or candidate and let the Supreme Court decide whether President Gen Pervez Musharraf can seek a third term.

In a lead editorial, the newspaper observed that President Musharraf “faces daunting obstacles” in his quest for another five-year term.

Because the Bush administration has backed Gen Musharraf as a pragmatic partner in a dangerous region, “the United States has a stake in the choices Mr Musharraf will make and may be tempted to weigh in on his side,” the paper noted.

“But the United States would best serve its own and Pakistan’s interests by supporting the rules of the democratic game, not any particular party or candidate,” Boston Globe warned.

In the current situation, the newspaper said, Gen Musharraf’s bid for another presidential term would almost certainly depend on decisions of the Supreme Court and its reinstated chief justice, Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry.

“That court will be asked to decide whether Musharraf can run while still chief of the army; whether the Constitution bars him from seeking what may be considered a third term; and whether he can seek election by the current parliament, as he wants, or must wait until the new legislature is chosen this autumn.”

“These are questions that should be resolved by an independent judiciary. America should clearly oppose any fresh attempt by Gen Musharraf to circumvent the laws of his country or the workings of democracy.”