New Delhi: External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukerjee met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday evening to discuss the issue of imposition of emergency in Pakistan.
"We regret the difficult times that Pakistan is passing through," PTI reported External Affairs Ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna as saying soon after Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf imposed emergency in the country.
"We trust that conditions of normalcy will soon return permitting Pakistan's transition to stability and democracy to continue," he added.
General Musharraf declared a state of emergency in the country on Saturday evening and issued a provisional constitutional order, the state-run Pakistan Television announced.
"The Chief of the Army Staff (General Musharraf) has proclaimed state of emergency and issued provisional constitutional order," the brief announcement said at 6.10 pm Pakistan time without giving any details.
Under the order, the constitution remains suspended, the federal cabinet ceases to exist and judges will have to take oath afresh.
An eight-member Supreme Court immediately set aside the Presidential order declaring Emergency amid reports that Chief
Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, who has been at
loggerheads with Musharraf, has been asked to go.
All land and mobile telephone services were suspended
and several private television channels were taken off air.
(With Agency inputs)
Comments
0 comment