Video commentary: Bhutto's successor

The standoff between President Musharraf and Pakistani opposition leaders in the aftermath of Benazir Bhutto's murder intensified today, as government-backed moves to postpone parliamentary elections were fiercely rejected.

As the country's Electoral Commission announced that a recommendation "has been sent to the government for a delay" in the January 8 polls, Nawaz Sharif, a former Prime Minister of Pakistan, dismissed the decision outright and demanded Mr Musharraf resign in favour of a unity government.

In a press conference held at the eastern city of Lahore, Mr Sharif, who was ousted in a military coup by Mr Musharraf in 1999, confirmed that he would not boycott the elections but added: "Nobody here wants the elections to go after January 8."

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Opposition parties suspect President Musharraf will use Bhutto's assassination as an excuse to put off elections

Zahid Hussain of The Times, in Islamabad

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Claiming Mr Musharraf was the root cause of the violence sweeping the country after Bhutto's killing, Mr Sharif added: "He is a one-man calamity and source of all the problems. We demand that he must immediately resign. This will end all chaos and unrest in the country."

Claiming that a "new president should form a government of national consensus," Mr Sharif, the head of the Pakistan Muslim League-N party, added: "The new national government should arrange free and fair elections."

Mr Sharif's comments came after Pakistani election officials revealed that they would recommend next week’s vote should be delayed for at least four weeks due to a wave of unrest following the assassination of Bhutto. A formal announcement on the plans will be made tomorrow.

The decision is likely to be supported by Mr Musharraf, who believes that holding elections in a climate of mass-social unrest and violence would be unworkable.

However, opposition parties have rejected the moves, suspecting that the President would use Bhutto's killing in Rawalpindi last Thursday as an excuse to put off the poll amid indications he would be beaten.

This afternoon, the United States called for a "certain" date for the elections to be made clear in order to prevent Pakistan sliding further away from democracy. While making clear that January 8 would be the preferred date, the State Department stopped short of demanding that this timetable be kept.

"If elections can be held in a safe and secure way, and in a positive way, on January 8, then that’s probably what should happen," Tom Casey, a State Department spokesman, said.

He added: "The key here is that there be a date certain for elections in Pakistan. We would certainly have concerns about some sort of indefinite postponement of the elections.

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