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10 members of Bhutto's party shift loyalties

In a major jolt to Pakistan's former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, on the eve of the inaugural session of the newly elected parliament, 10 members of her Pakistan People's Party have broken ranks and extended support to the pro-Musharraf Pakistan Muslim League, Quaid-e-Azam, boosting its chances of forming a government.

At a hurriedly called press conference in Islamabad around midnight, the PPP dissidents led by Faisal Saleh Hayat announced the formation of a 'forward bloc' within the party to take independent decisions.

They said they were backing a 'government of national consensus', a term used for a proposed coalition between the PML-Q and the PPP. Despite the support of the breakaway group, the PML-Q still falls short of a simple majority by 22 votes.

The PML-Q and its allies are reported to have secured 150 votes so far against the minimum required 172 in the 342-member National Assembly.

Hayat, however, declined to call it a split within the party, saying the dissidents would continue to regard Bhutto as their leader.

Reacting to Hayat's announcement, PPP general secretary Raza Rabbani accused President Pervez Musharraf's government of breaking the party with coercion and inducements.

PTI

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