Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani. — File Photo

LAHORE: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani will not write a letter to Swiss authorities to re-open cases against President Asif Zardari, according to Minister for Railways Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour.

“The entire establishment joined hands with Gen Musharraf, but Gilani Sahib preferred to remain behind bars for six years than to shake hands with the military dictator,” Mr Bilour said after holding talks with agitating locomotive drivers at the Pakistan Railways headquarters in Lahore on Thursday.

“Even the judiciary ignored the 1973 Constitution and took oath under the PCO, but Mr Gilani is a man of principles and remained loyal to his party leadership. Now he is being asked to write against that very leadership which is regrettable.

“Why didn’t the Supreme Court insist this during the regimes of Nawaz Sharif and Pervez Musharraf.

Under the circumstances, the Supreme Court should either itself write the letter or wait till the present government completes its term and a new set-up is inducted,” said Mr Bilour who belongs to the Awami National Party, a coalition partner of the PPP in the federal government.

Opinion

Editorial

Budget presser
Updated 14 Jun, 2026

Budget presser

If the FBR falters, the government will find itself in hot water sooner rather than later.
Muharram precautions
14 Jun, 2026

Muharram precautions

WITH Muharram due to start next week, the authorities have already begun annual exercises to ensure that the ...
Blood bequests
14 Jun, 2026

Blood bequests

WORLD Blood Donor Day offers a moment of “gratitude, advocacy and renewed commitment” for thalassaemia patients...
Sustainable path?
Updated 13 Jun, 2026

Sustainable path?

The FY27 budget is the first clear signal that the government is ready to transition from stabilisation to growth.
Prioritising education
13 Jun, 2026

Prioritising education

THOUGH the improvement in the country’s literacy rate may be slight, as highlighted by the Economic Survey, it ...
Poverty’s rise
13 Jun, 2026

Poverty’s rise

AS attention turns to the government’s plans for the coming fiscal year, one set of figures deserves particular...