Musharraf 145;respects146; ruling on judge

8220;The President has stated earlier that any judgement the Supreme Court arrives at will be honoured, respected and adhered to,8221; he said.

Officials said a careful evaluation is being made over the judgement8217;s implications, which analysts believe could limit powers of Musharraf.

The judgement perhaps is one of its kind in the history of Pakistan, where the judiciary has been often blamed for playing a second fiddle to the military. It may also have serious implications on Musharraf8217;s plan to get re-elected in uniform by the present assemblies for a new five year term.

The court could also take a pro-active stand on every decision Musharraf makes in the coming months, even though he continued to enjoy the support of the powerful military and international community in the war against terrorism.

However, some analysts argue that it was still not all over for Musharraf.

His plans to get re-elected by the present assemblies in uniform was based on a premise that he had the authorisation from Parliament. If the case goes to Supreme Court and he manages to win it, the opposition parties could do little but to accept it, according to a senior opposition leader who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Moreover, Chaudhry is not expected to head any bench relating to the cases of the government out of propriety as he was backed by the opposition parties during his suspension.

But to the credit of Chaudhry, he never made political speeches and stressed on legal issues and importance of restoration of democracy during his addresses to the lawyers8217; conventions.

There have been calls now for resignation of Musharraf as the court has thrown out his reference.

Noted human rights activist Asma Jahangir was the first to call for Musharraf to resign. 8220;He should have resigned a long time back. He should not only resign but also owe the people of this country an apology.

8220;All the excess of the government should be brought to the book. There is a clear divide now between military and civillian set-ups,8221; she told the media at the Supreme Court after the verdict was announced.

One of Cahudhry8217;s lawyers Munir A Mallik, said, 8220;Today we have seen the birth of a new Supreme Court.8221;

Timeline of a fightback
March 9: Iftikhar M Chaudhry, 20th Chief Justice of Pakistan, is suspended by Musharraf on charges of 8220;misuse of authority8221;. A reference is sent to the Supreme Judicial Council SJC to probe the allegations
March 12: Lawyers across Pakistan begin boycotting courts, stage protests against the suspension
March 16: Violence breaks out at an Islamabad rally in support of Chaudhry
March 24: Rana Bhagwan Das sworn in as Acting CJ, becomes the first Hindu judge to occupy the top post
April 3: SJC adjourns hearing of the case amid spiralling protests against his suspension
May 5-6: Chaudhry8217;s travels from Islamabad to Lahore to address a rally, where he says dictatorships will inevitably be 8220;destroyed8221;
May 12: Riots erupt in Karachi with pro-government activists clashing with opposition supporters as Chaudhry flies to the city, killing 40
May 16: Musharraf8217;s lawyers tell the court that he is not answerable to the court so his name shouldn8217;t be there in the petition lodged by the CJ.
May 29: Chaudhry accuses Musharraf, PM Shaukat Aziz and top brass of the intelligence of pressuring him to quit with offers to 8220;accommodate8221; him
July 16: Musharraf drops the charge of 8220;misconduct8221;, one of the two allegations made against Chaudhry
Jul 17: Suicide bomber blows himself up killing 17 just before Chaudhry is to address a meeting in Islamabad
July 20: SC reinstates Chaudhry in a resounding 10-3 verdict