Pakistan agreed Monday to reinstate a fired chief justice, a government official said, a move that could help defuse a political crisis that has sparked street battles and raised fears of instability in the country at a time of surging Islamist violence.I knew he'd cave. And it's not going to "defuse" anything, since Uncle Fester wants to be in charge.
Opposition leaders and lawyers had vowed to sit-in at the parliament later Monday until Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, known for his independence and willingness to challenge authority, was reinstated. The capital has been barricaded and scores of extra police brought in amid fears of violence.
A senior government official said Chaudhry would be sworn in on March 22, the day after the current chief justice was due to retire. He spoke on condition of anonymity because the prime minister was due formally announce the decision later Monday.
Presidential spokesman Farhatullah Babar said Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani would soon have "good news" for the country that would "end the crisis."
The concession came as thousands of protesters led by Nawaz Sharif, the head of the largest opposition party and a longtime foe of President Asif Ali Zardari, were traveling to Islamabad in a convoy to join the planned sit-in. Sharif joined the convoy after ignoring a house arrest order in his hometown of Lahore in Punjab, where his supporters fought running battles with police.