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Convicted Pakistan PM Defies Calls To Resign


Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani
Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani
Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani says he will not step down, a day after he was convicted of contempt of court.

In a defiant appearance in the lower house of parliament on April 27, Gilani said, "Only this parliament has the authority to remove me."

Gilani faces opposition calls to quit after the Supreme Court on April 26 convicted him for failing to reopen a graft case against President Asif Ali Zardari, and handed him a symbolic sentence of less than one minute of detention.

His lawyer said he would appeal against the conviction.

The allegations against Zardari date back to the 1990s, when he was accused of using Swiss bank accounts to launder bribes.

Gilani argues that Zardari has full immunity as head of state.

Based on reporting by AFP and AP

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