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| No deal at all with Benazir Bhutto: Musharraf | | | 21 Apr, 2007
ISLAMABAD: Playing down reports of political rapprochement with former Premier Benazir Bhutto, Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf has said there was "no deal at all" and insisted that he would not quit as Army Chief till the general elections, which he promised to hold as scheduled later this year.
"There's no deal at all, no alliance, no deal" with Bhutto, Musharraf told Al-Arabia television in an interview.
He said the general elections would be held by the end of the year in a fair and transparent manner, and any political action could be considered after viewing their outcome.
Musharraf also said he was legally entitled to continue to hold the dual authority of President and Army Chief. "I am not removing the uniform till the elections because I have been allowed constitutionally to remain the President and the Chief of the Army staff till the end of the year," he said without elaborating his plans thereafter.
He said it was decided by Parliament with a two-thirds majority to keep the two offices at a time.
While he denied a deal with Bhutto which according to reports he was pursuing under pressure from United States, he said any change in Pakistan would be through political process by its people and not by any outside pressure.
Fair, free and impartial elections would be held this year according to the Constitution of the country, Musharraf said. "This is election year and we will follow the Constitution of Pakistan."
On US-Pakistan relations, Musharraf dispelled the impression that they came under strain over differences on dealing with Taliban.
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