President dismisses Bhutto government

The Pakistani prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, was dismissed late last night amid allegations of corruption and mismanagement.

President Farooq Leghari, a former ally of Ms Bhutto's, has been under increasing pressure to use his constitutional power to dismiss Ms Bhutto. Miraj Khalid, a former stalwart of her party, was named interim prime minister. A spokesman for President Leghari said the country's four provincial assemblies had also been dismissed.

Soldiers stood guard outside Ms Bhutto's residence and were seen entering the white marble Parliament building. They were also deployed outside the Pakistan Television building several blocks away. Some set up security points on the streets of Lahore and surrounded the provincial assembly building and governor's house there. They also sealed airports.

There were initial reports that Ms Bhutto's husband, Asif Ali Zardari, was arrested in the provincial Punjab capital of Lahore. Zardari, who was also Ms Bhutto's investment minister, has been at the centre of several corruption scandals. A spokesman for Ms Bhutto confirmed she had been dismissed: "The prime minister has received this letter from the president informing her that the national assembly has been dissolved," said Farhatullah Babar. He said he had spoken to Ms Bhutto at her home but had no word on her reaction.

She has denied the charges against her and recently warned of "a conspiracy against democracy in Pakistan".

It was the second time Ms Bhutto has been dismissed from power. Her first term in office was abruptly ended in 1990 after only 20 months. At the time she also was accused of runaway corruption and incompetence. She regained office in 1993 elections.

Nawaz Sharif, who came to power after Ms Bhutto's first dismissal, was also dismissed but later reinstated by the Supreme Court. However within weeks he resigned under pressure from both the president and the army, and elections were held.

In its nearly 50 years of independence from Britain, Pakistan has seen a series of military leaders and shaky attempts at parliamentary democracy. Ms Bhutto was known on the international stage as a moderate leader of an Islamic state, a woman to be reckoned with in a society dominated by men. But at home, she faced enemies on all fronts.

Opposition parties criticised her for not curbing ethnic and religious violence. Last week a right-wing religious party held the federal capital under virtual siege for two days, demanding her resignation for what it called rampant corruption and incompetence.