Pakistani Prime Minister Charged with Contempt

Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images)

Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani was indicted on Monday by the Supreme Court for contempt of court after he did not reopen corruption cases against President Asif Ali Zardari, who is also the head of his political party, according to media reports.

Gilani arrived at a courthouse on Monday and pleaded not guilty, according to Al-Jazeera. If he is convicted, he could be removed from power and face six months in jail. His next court date is on Feb. 22.

Gilani said that Zardari, who previously argued that he was innocent, has immunity as the head of Pakistan, reported the BBC. Zardari is accused of money laundering and bribery.

Imran Khan, the head of the Tehreek-e-Insaf progressive party, said Gilani should step down from power after the indictment.

“The Supreme Court is operating cautiously in all its proceedings, so rather than pressurizing it, you [Gilani] should resign as there is no justification for you to continue as the prime minister of Pakistan,” he said, according to the Express Tribune. Khan added that democracy is rule by “morality, not force.”

“Was this done to benefit or to serve the people of Pakistan? No. This was done only to guard the plundered money in President Asif Ali Zardari’s Swiss accounts,” he said, according to the newspaper.