Sharif Leaves Pakistani Coalition Government

So by tomorrow there will be no ruling government in Pakistan, unless the remaining coalition parties ally with Musharraf's party. But I don't see that happening. A weak or ineffective minority government in Pakistan will only help the taliban consolidate their power in the NWFT. But then again, even with the coalition government the taliban were gaining ground. Reuters

ISLAMABAD, May 12 (Reuters) - Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif pulled his party out of Pakistan's six-week-old coalition government on Monday, plunging the volatile Muslim nation back into political uncertainty.

Sharif, whose Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) was the second-largest member of a four party alliance, made the announcement after failing to break a deadlock with its main coalition partner over the reinstatement of dismissed judges.

Sharif made the restoration of 60 judges sacked by President Pervez Musharraf in November the main condition for joining the coalition led by the party of Asif Ali Zardari, the widower and political successor of the late Benazir Bhutto.

....

Three days of talks in London between Sharif and Zardari, whose Pakistan People's Party (PPP) leads the coalition, ended on Sunday without any breakthrough.

"Our ministers will meet the prime minister tomorrow and will submit their resignations," Sharif told a news conference.

Nine of the 24 ministers in Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani's cabinet belong to the PML-N, including Finance Minister Ishaq Dar.

Sharif said his party would continue to support the PPP government despite quitting the cabinet.

"For the time being, we'll not sit in opposition."

[...]

Western allies in the war on terrorism dread nuclear-armed Pakistan sliding into a prolonged period of political instability.

ANOTHER ELECTION?

If the PML-N were to withdraw support completely, analysts say the PPP could end up inviting Musharraf's allies to join the coalition, or call for another election.

The split in the coalition, analysts say, would be welcomed by U.S. ally Musharraf, who came to power in a 1999 coup and only quit as army chief last November. The humiliating loss of parliamentary support in February polls had left him isolated.

Sharif, who was overthrown by Musharraf, wants the judges brought back as part of a strategy to drive his usurper from office.