The fate of Pakistan's beleaguered top leaders, including President Asif Ali Zardari, could be decided on Monday when its embattled government appears before the Supreme Court, which is set to take up the memo scandal and high-profile graft cases.
Ahead of the crucial hearing in Supreme Court, embattled Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani turned to Parliament for support, amid indications that the powerful military would rally behind the apex court.
The National Assembly or lower house of parliament is expected to vote on Monday on a resolution that seeks endorsement and support for 'efforts made by the political leadership for strengthening democracy' and calls for reposing 'full confidence and trust' in the leadership.
Even as parliament considers the resolution, a 17-member bench of the Supreme Court will resume hearing of a case on reopening of corruption cases that were closed under the National Reconciliation Ordinance, a graft amnesty issued by former military ruler Pervez Musharraf in 2007.
A judicial commission appointed by the apex court to investigate a mysterious memo that sought US help to prevent a feared military coup in Pakistan last year will also continue its proceedings at the same time.
Meanwhile, Gilani has defiantly rejected the Army's demand that he retract his criticism of the military, saying
"I will not answer to any individual as I am answerable to parliament." His remarks came in the backdrop of reports that the powerful Army Chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani had told President Zardari to ask the Prime Minister clarify or retract his criticism of the Army and the ISI.
Controversial Pakistani-American businessman Mansoor Ijaz, who triggered a storm in the country's political circles by making public the secret memo, has sought time till January 25 to testify before the commission.
Tensions between the government and the military reached a peak last week after Gilani said the army and intelligence chiefs had acted in an 'unconstitutional and illegal' manner by filing affidavits on the memo issue in the Supreme Court without getting the government's approval.
The military rebuked Gilani, saying his remarks could have 'grievous consequences'. Gilani retaliated the same day by sacking Defence Secretary Lt Gen (retired) Khalid Naeem Lodhi, a confidant of Kayani, saying he had created misunderstandings over the memo issue.
The apex court accepted Kayani's request for a probe into the memo scandal while rejecting the government's contention that the issue should be investigated by a parliamentary panel.
The Supreme Court has been building pressure on the government since it struck down the NRO, which benefited President Zardari and 8,000 others, in 2009.
It has pressured the government to write to Swiss authorities to reopen cases of alleged money laundering against Zardari but the government has refused to do so, saying the President enjoys immunity under the Constitution.
Zardari himself has said that the government will not approach the Swiss authorities as long as he is in office as such a move would be tantamount to putting on trial the grave of his wife, former premier Benazir Bhutto, who too had benefited from the NRO.
However, the Supreme Court warned last week that the premier could be disqualified and that action could also be taken against the President if the government kept defying its orders on the NRO issue.