Pakistan in uproar as Musharraf blocks Islamist premier

The President of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf, faced a chorus of condemnation yesterday after he delayed the opening of the country's long-awaited new parliament.

Critics, including political rivals and newspaper pundits, interpreted the delay as an attempt by General Musharraf to manipulate the outcome of last month's elections by giving his allies more time to form a ruling coalition and ensure that an Islamic cleric, Fazl-ur Rahman, does not become Prime Minister.

Although Mr Rahman is seen by many in Pakistan as a pragmatist, the Islamic bloc to which he belongs includes pro-Taliban elements highly critical of the military government's support for America.

Mr Rahman is said to include the Taliban leader, Mullah Mohammed Omar, among his friends. He worked with former prime minister Benazir Bhutto's government, and has a long record of opposing military rule in Pakistan.

General Musharraf and his army colleagues do not relish mullahs controlling positions of high office – including key ministries. Nor do the Americans, who see it as yet another potential obstacle in the hunt for al-Qa'ida and Taliban operatives on Pakistani soil.

Pakistan's National Assembly was due to hold its inaugural session today, its first sitting for more than three years. But the government of General Musharraf – who has ruled as a dictator since seizing power from the government led by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a bloodless coup in 1999 – announced on Wednesday that there would be a delay. State-run television said the postponement would last for a week.

The parliamentary elections, held last month amid worldwide publicity, were portrayed by Pakistan's military authorities as an important move towards democratic civilian government. This was met with widespread scepticism, not least because a few months earlier General Musharraf helped himself to a fistful of new powers, including the right to dissolve parliament and fire the prime minister.

A team of European Union observers described the poll as "seriously flawed", and accused the Pakistani government of using its resources to support pro-Musharraf parties, notably the PML (QA) – otherwise known as the "king's party" because of its official backing.

However, the election did not go as General Musharraf must have hoped, and there was no outright winner.

The PML (QA) won the largest number of seats, and has been pressing for a delay in parliament's opening for more time to muster forces. To the consternation of Washington, there were strong gains for the Islamic bloc – a coalition of six groups called the MMA.

The postponement of parliament's opening came after a deal was announced last weekend in which an alliance of pro-democracy parties – including Ms Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party (PPP) – would join forces with the MMA to cobble together a majority in the 342-seat National Assembly, with the cleric Fazl-ur Rahman as their joint candidate for premier. This exotic union – which sent the Pakistan stock market plunging when it was announced – was fragile from the start. Yesterday it was unclear whether it was still in place.

The PPP issued an angry statement in response to the postponement, saying that it "lent credence to the perception that the regime is manipulating the post-election dynamics to weaken anti-regime political parties. It is based on mala fide intent and is motivated by the desire of the regime to assist the pro-regime king's party to muster requisite strength to enable it to form a government."

The faction headed by the Nawaz Sharif, who like Ms Bhutto was barred from running because he is living abroad, also reacted strongly. "This postponement proves the moral bankruptcy of the regime and its rejection of the people's verdict," a spokesman said.

Pakistan's leading newspapers were also unimpressed. "Behind all this seems to loom the hovering shadow of what is called the establishment. How to find a way for the military to stay on and yet not give the impression of doing so?" wrote the Dawn daily newspaper, in an editorial headlined "What's going on?"

The Nation newspaper said the pro-Musharraf PML (QA) was now "desperately seeking the support of off-stage players to win the numbers game and for this it needs more time." An internet poll in The Nation suggested that the educated Pakistani public were also none too happy. Eight of 10 said they wanted the opening of parliament to go ahead on schedule.

General Musharraf has won praise for steering Pakistan through the potentially destabilising American campaign against the Taliban regime in neighbouring Afghanistan.

But his decision to back the war against terror and crack down on extremist Islamic militant groups was also a factor behind stunning gains by the MMA in last month's vote, which it fought on a fiercely anti-US platform.