Pakistan court to probe 'memogate', adding pressure on govt

Pakistan's Supreme Court said on Friday it will investigate a scandal surrounding an unsigned memo seeking Washington's help to rein in the powerful Pakistani military, a decision bound to heap pressure on the weak civilian government.

The "memogate" scandal has highlighted historic tensions between the government and the military, in power for more than half Pakistan's 64 years and whose help Washington needs to battle militants fuelling violence in neighbouring Afghanistan.

Pakistan's politics were thrown into crisis on October 10 when businessman Mansoor Ijaz wrote in the Financial Times that a senior Pakistani diplomat had asked that a memo be delivered to the Pentagon with a plea for US help to stave off a feared military coup. This followed the raid that killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in May.

Ijaz, who is of Pakistani descent, later identified the diplomat as Pakistan's ambassador to Washington, Husain Haqqani, a close ally of President Asif Ali Zardari. Haqqani denied involvement but resigned over the controversy. Friday's decision puts additional pressure on the government. There is widespread speculation the probe could lead to Zardari's ouster if a link is established.

"I think that this is one of the darkest days in history for the judiciary," Haqqani's lawyer, Asma Jahangir, told reporters outside the court after the announcement. "I said in the Supreme Court too that this is a very disappointing judgment. This is a judgment that places national security above fundamental rights."

The government has become increasingly unpopular since Zardari took office in 2008, failing to tackle myriad problems from crippling power cuts to suicide bombings and a struggling economy. The army has said it has no plans to topple the government, but analysts say it has plenty of ways to pressure Zardari to step down.

Although his position is largely ceremonial, Zardari wields considerable influence as leader of the ruling party and his forced departure would be a humiliation for the civilian leadership and could throw the country into turmoil.

(Writing by Qasim Nauman)