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The European Union (EU) has categorically told the government here that it will be seriously disappointed if the military authorities in Pakistan do not hold provincial and general elections on a party basis within the Supreme Court timetable.

Various Kashmiri leaders from both sides of the line of control (LoC) met formally in Islamabad yesterday to discuss the short-term ceasefire offer by New Delhi and agreed that it should not be categorically turned down even as visiting Kashmiri leader Abdul Ghani Lone met Pakistani Chief Executive General Pervez Musharraf.

Addressing a news conference here, Chattha said that the decision to induct the Kulsoom group into the alliance was reached under a conspiracy when the GDA had expelled Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf (PTI) and Tahirul Qadri's Pakistan Awami Tehrik (PAT).

In a renewed incident of sectarian violence, a prominent leader of the Tehreek-e-Jafaria Pakistan (TJP) Anwar Ali Akhunzada was shot dead yesterday soon after he stepped out of his residence in Peshawar.

Pakistani Chief executive General Pervez Musharraf is leaving Islamabad  today, leading a delegation to the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) summit, officials said here yesterday.

Pakistan's Chief Executive General Pervez Musharraf has approved a proposal to put the Karachi Electric Supply Corp (KESC) up for sale if the ongoing arrangements for repayment of its loans do not work, official sources told Gulf News.

In a move, which left many surprised, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) prosecutor general Farook Adam was relieved of his duties yesterday at the expiry of his contact.

Chief executive General Pervez Musharraf has given fresh directives to the law and interior ministries and those in charge of the human rights to immediately address complaints, if any, about lack of protection to minorities, official sources told Gulf News yesterday.

"If New Delhi does not end repression in occupied Kashmir and does not enter into a meaningful dialogue with Pakistan along with the Kashmir leadership, India's short-term ceasefire offer will only be tactical and part of its efforts to impose a military solution in Kashmir," a foreign office spokesman said yesterday.

Pakistan dubbed the U.S. decision to slap sanctions against Islamabad as unjustified and unwarranted, but said its indigenous missile development programme would not be affected by discriminatory technology control regimes.

Pakistan says it will honour the time-table set by the Supreme Court to hold provincial and general elections and involve the political parties in the process, head of the European Union delegation said yesterday.

Pakistan said arch-rival India's extension of a ceasefire in Kashmir had a "positive tone" but was not enough to bring hope for an early resumption of deadlocked talks.