Pakistan arrests more opposition, eyes on Bhutto

By Zeeshan Haider

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani authorities arrested a top leader of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif's party and scores of opposition figures on Sunday in a countrywide crackdown after President Pervez Musharraf imposed emergency rule.

"Musharraf's days are numbered. The time has come to end the political role of the army," Javed Hashmi, acting president of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), told reporters before being whisked away by police in the central city of Multan.

In Karachi, the country's largest and most politically volatile city, police chief Azhar Ali Farooqi spelled out the uncompromising stand that has been ordered.

"Our soft policy is over now. We have zero tolerance. We will take action, arrest and use force if necessary," Farooqi said, as attention turned to what Pakistan's most potent opposition leader, Benazir Bhutto, might do next.

Bhutto, who ended 8 years of self-imposed exile last month with Musharraf's blessing, returned to Karachi on Saturday evening after a short trip to Dubai and took a strong stand against what she called a "mini-martial" law.

But the litmus test will be whether she calls for street protests and risks arrest herself or seeks to persuade Musharraf to reverse his decision.

An official of her Pakistan People's Party said police were conducting raids to arrest their activists in central Punjab, the country's politically most influential province.

"So far, 200 activists of our party have been arrested," Farzana Raja, a party spokeswoman in Punjab said.