Islamabad: Amid the uncertainty over government formation in Pakistan, the Musharraf regime has revived a 10-year-old corruption case against PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, who is accused of stashing $55 million in kickbacks in Swiss bank accounts.
In a move seen as a pressure tactic against Zardari, whose party won the most seats in Monday's general election, lawyers representing the Pakistan government yesterday urged a Swiss court in Geneva to prosecute him on accusations that he and his wife, slain former premier Benazir Bhutto, took bribes from Swiss cargo inspection companies and hid the money in the Alpine country.
The case stalled last year after Musharraf struck a "reconciliation" deal with Bhutto under which all corruption charges would be dropped, Pakistani media said.
But lawyers argued on Thursday that the charges should proceed inspite of the amnesty deal, saying the Pakistan Supreme Court's decision on the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) was expected "in a few weeks".
Pakistan's Swiss lawyer Dominique said Zardari's name "appears on each page (of the dossier) as the beneficial owner of offshore companies."
Zardari's lawyer, Severio Lembo said "There has been no ruling in 10 years. Why? The answer is simple - because this is all political".
The three-judge bench announced at the end of a 90-minute hearing that it would soon rule on whether to send the case to the prosecutor for trial, or back to a magistrate for more work.
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