Zardari appears weakened,his days in power may be numbered

Gilanis move reflected the growing isolation of Zardari within the ruling PPP,over which he had exercised complete control.

The President has been highly weakened by the latest developments. His actions were untenable and were rejected by the people and even his own party, said Lt Gen retd Talat Masood,Pakistans leading political and security analysts.

Former ISI chief Hamid Gul felt if Zardari does not mend his approach to the problem,then he would have to say goodbye to Presidents House very soon. He is a very weak politician who does not understand the mood and the temperature of the people. He tried to run the affairs of the state by gimmickry rather than by principles and that is where he has gone wrong, he told CNN-IBN.

Political analyst Harris Khalique said Zardari had been misled by aides who believed Sharif would not be able to organise a major protest. If the common people can bring down a strong military dictator,they can also bring down a man with a serious credibility crisis, Khalique said,referring to the movement by lawyers and opposition parties last year that led to the ouster of Musharraf.

The developments had also proved that Zardari was largely a successor to the leadership of the PPP and not a political leader in his own right,he said.

Analysts said Gilani,who was hand-picked for the post of Prime Minister by Zardari,had emerged stronger from the political crisis by convincing the President to reinstate the former Chief Justice.

Gilanis stature has improved as he is now perceived as honest and reliable, said Masood. Though his abilities as an administrator remained questionable,Gilani now had a higher level of credibility, he said. The Prime Minister will be more assertive now and he could help the parliament re-assert itself, Masood said.

The analysts also welcomed the low-key role played by the Army in defusing the political crisis. Over the past few days,Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani,who has worked consistently to distance the powerful military from politics,held several meetings with Zardari and Gilani to push for political reconciliation.

The Armys role shows it has realised the importance of democracy. It has also realised that directly ruling Pakistan is not possible in the changed environment, said Masood.