Pakistani anti-corruption courts on Wednesday dropped five graft cases against PPP leader Asif Ali Zardari, a key step that could make him eligible to head a Government.The decisions by two anti-corruption courts in Rawalpindi follow the Supreme Court ruling dismissing legal challenges to the controversial National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) issued by President Pervez Musharraf last year granting amnesty to PPP leaders in graft cases.The Rawalpindi courts quashed five cases against Zardari and two against his close aide Rehman Malik. They also ordered release of the PPP Chairman’s assets and properties that were frozen or confiscated, including bank accounts and sugar mills.The graft cases against them related to a contentious deal for the import of tractors and the alleged amassing of wealth beyond known sources of income and dated back to the time when Zardari’s late wife, Benazir Bhutto, was the Prime Minister in 1990s.Zardari led his Pakistan People’s Party to victory in the February 18 general election, following the assassination of Bhutto on December 27 last year. PPP, which emerged as the largest party in the polls, is set to form the new government in Pakistan with its allies like PML-N and ANP.Zardari did not contest the polls and had often said he was not willing to take up the top post. Despite his assertions there have been speculation that the new Prime Minister of the PPP-led government would only be an interim choice.
