Musharraf to be impeached; faces grave crisis

ISLAMABAD: President Pervez Musharraf was today facing the gravest crisis since seizing power over eight years ago with Pakistan's ruling coalition deciding to impeach him after drawing up a chargesheet.

Coalition leaders Asif Ali Zardari of PPP and Nawaz Sharif of PML-N announced at a joint press conference here, "the coalition believes that it is imperative to move for impeachment against General Musharraf."

"We have good news for democracy. The coalition decided that it will immediately initiate impeachment proceedings," Zardari said after three days of talks with Sharif during which they also decided to restore all the judges deposed by Musharraf.

A rattled Musharraf finally cancelled his visit to Beijing to handle the crisis confronting him and was said to be consulting his close aides. There were apprehensions that he might order dissolution of the National Assembly or impose emergency rule under a caretaker government.