Pakistani court dismisses premier's appeal against contempt charge

Feb 10, 2012, 7:44 GMT

Islamabad - Pakistan's Supreme Court on Friday dismissed an appeal filed by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani against a decision to charge him with contempt of court over his failure to reopen corruption cases against the president.

'The court has dismissed our appeal,' Gilani's attorney Aitzaz Ahsan said. 'As a result, the contempt of court charges will be framed against the prime minister on Monday. The prime minister will appear in the court on that day.'

Gilani has refused to write a letter to Swiss authorities asking them to reopen money-laundering cases involving millions of dollars against President Asif Ali Zardari, arguing that as head of state, Zardari enjoys immunity from prosecution.

The Swiss cases date back to the mid-1990s when Zardari's late wife, Benazir Bhutto, was the country's prime minister. They were closed at the request of the Pakistani government under a controversial reconciliation order.

The order involved a deal between Zardari's Pakistan People's Party and former military strongman Pervez Musharraf, under which many people, including Zardari, were granted immunity from corruption and other criminal charges.