PPP-led govt reduced to minority in Pak as MQM pulls out

KARACHI/ISLAMABAD: The beleaguered PPP-led government in Pakistan was today reduced to a minority after the MQM pulled out of the ruling coalition ostensibly to protest its failure to address the people's problems.

"The Muttahida Qaumi Movement has announced its decision to sit in the opposition benches in the National Assembly and in the Senate," the party said in a statement in Karachi.

"It has been decided. We will sit on the opposition benches in the National Assembly and the Senate," MQM spokesman Wasay Jalil was quoted as saying by Dawn.

The MQM, which had pulled its two ministers out of the federal cabinet last month, announced its decision to quit the nearly three-year-old coalition following meetings of its top leaders in Karachi and London.

The MQM, which has 25 lawmakers in the National Assembly or lower house of parliament, has played a key role in propping up the government.

The PPP, which has 126 lawmakers and is now backed by 31 more parliamentarians, was at least 14 seats short of a simple majority in the 342-member National Assembly.

In Lahore, Gilani insisted that his government was not facing any crisis and would survive despite the withdrawal of support by the MQM.

"Do you think the government will fall? The government will stay despite everything...I don't see any crisis," he told reporters.

MQM leaders said their party had decided to pull out of the coalition because the PPP had failed to address problems confronting the people, including a rise in the prices of fuel and other items, growing unemployment, terrorism and an economic downturn.

They claimed the MQM had acted only after giving the PPP adequate time to address these issues.

This was the second major setback for the PPP-led government since December, when the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam left the coalition after the Prime Minister sacked one of the ministers from the party.

Since then, JUI chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has called for the resignation of Gilani, saying he had sabotaged the policy of reconciliation adopted by PPP chief and President Asif Ali Zardari.