ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Gilani on Wednesday summarily dismissed his National Security Advisor Major General (retd) Mehmud Durrani for being a bit too candid on the tricky issue of Mumbai carnage suspect Ajmal Kasab, ‘without taking him into confidence’.

The late night decision by Gilani to sack the highly influential member of his cabinet immediately sparked speculations of growing fissures within the ruling party, and perhaps amongst the various pillars of the establishment on handling crucial and sensitive matters of national security.

Even before an official statement on Durrani’s dismissal was made public, a furious Prime Minister reportedly told some journalists that his national security advisor had ‘embarrassed him and the country by going public with the report of Ajmal Kasab’s nationality without his permission. ‘I have dismissed him with immediate effect’, he reportedly said.

Durrani was quoted as telling a TV channel that he was still awaiting a formal announcement by the prime minister.

Another television channel also quoted sources close to Durrani as having said that whatever he told the media about Ajmal Kasab and the findings of the Pakistani investigators were in his knowledge since he was a member of the federal cabinet.

Durrani was summarily dismissed amidst reports of tension within the government, particularly between the president and prime minister, on various issues linked to the decision making process.

The latest move by the Prime Minister came amidst heightened confusion over the issue of the Ajmal Kasab story.

Dawn News, while quoting an unnamed senior official, was the first to break the news about Ajmal Kasab’s identity as a Pakistani national.

In less than an hour an Indian TV channel started to quote Mehmud Durrani as saying that in fact the preliminary investigations by the Pakistani authorities have confirmed his nationality.

Soon after the Pakistani foreign secretary Salman Bashir denied such reports, followed by the information minister Sherry Rehman confirming that Ajmal Kasab was in fact a Pakistani national, adding that investigations regarding him and his gang’s role were ongoing.

Late in the evening Gilani took the extreme step of sacking Mehmud Durrani. Still, he failed to state if the National Security Advisor was sacked for being irresponsible or candid.

Highly informed sources in the government said the security agencies investigating Ajmal Kasab affair had already prepared their report, and through the ministry of interior, it had been passed on to the prime minister for a formal decision.

The probe had concluded that Ajmal Kasab was in fact a Pakistani national, but it was left to the government, or prime minister, to decide when it should be made public. These sources said Durrani was apparently sacked for leaking the news, since it not only caught the prime minister off guard, but perhaps also deprived him of taking the credit for breaking the news

Sources in the government said this was not the first time that Gilani had dismissed a senior official. Recently his principal secretary Siraj Shamsuddin was removed in a similar manner.

Other changes were also made at the top level of the establishment and cabinet division, apparently done without taking the President into confidence, and in fact, against his will and desire.

Observers of Islamabad’s treacherous politics say the day-long developments resulting in the sacking of one of the most influential members of the cabinet were not only indicative of a disconnect between various sections of the government, but also confirm that there is a growing rift between various pillars of the government.