President Zardari ,Pakistan coup, Pakistan coup Rumors, Pakistan coup News

Reuters reported that ,the yen and Swiss franc rose on Friday after a rumour of a coup in Pakistan, which was denied by the president's spokesman, prompted investors to close positions in the euro and riskier currencies and triggered stop-loss orders.

The euro hit its lowest since March against the Swiss franc, often considered a safe-haven currency, and the yen surged against the dollar, euro and higher yielding Australian dollar as thin liquidity set a chain reaction in motion.

A spokesman for Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari dismissed the coup rumours that started after a government minister suspected of corruption was stopped from leaving the country, saying there was no coup.

Further, a report from the UK’s Guardian indicated that some 248 people in total are on an ‘exit control list’ , the latter having been drawn up after Pakistan’s Supreme Court ended amnesty for current President Zardari.

Calls for Zardari’s resignation came from the country’s main opposition party folloiwng the Supreme Court’s ruling, which until now was protected from corruption charges.

The men who wish to replace Mr. Zardari represent the religious right-wing backers of the Taliban and al-Qaeda, adding a new obstacle in Barack Obama's war effort in Afghanistan. 

Raja Zafarul-Haq, chairman of the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) said:

On the moral ground, he should realize that in this situation he is no longer able to effectively run the government, run the country, [or] represent Pakistan within Pakistan or outside.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Pakistan's top anti-corruption agency, said it was reopening hundreds of cases after the court quashed a legal amnesty introduced by the former president Pervez Musharraf two years ago.

Ghazni Khan, the agency's spokesman, said it had asked the interior ministry to put 248 people on the exit control list, preventing them from leaving the country.

Khan did not give the names, but local TV stations, citing official sources, said the interior minister, Rehman Malik, was among them. Malik, who is usually voluble in front of the media, refused to comment on the case.

The agency also said it was reviving arrest warrants in some cases and freezing assets. The court ruling that struck down the corruption amnesty on Wednesday triggered turmoil in Pakistan's political system.

Opposition politicians are clamouring for Zardari's resignation, but he has insisted he will not go. As the president, he enjoys immunity from prosecution.