From Rezaul H Laskar Islamabad, Dec 17 (PTI) Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani today rejected the notion of a clash between Pakistan's civilian government and army or the judiciary over the Memogate scandal, saying both the institutions were pro-democracy and did not want to derail the existing system. "Both the army and the judiciary are pro-democracy and I am confident that they do not want the derailment of the system, as it takes years to put the system back on the rails," Gilani told reporters during an event at the Prime Minister's House. The premier's remarks came against the backdrop of differing stands adopted by the government and the army over a move by the Supreme Court to probe the alleged memo that was sent to the US military seeking help to prevent a feared coup in Pakistan. The government has asked the apex court to dismiss petitions seeking a probe into the scandal, but army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and Inter-Services Intelligence agency chief Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha have said the matter should be investigated by the court as national security issues were involved. The government has also challenged the court's jurisdiction to hear the case at a time when the scandal is being probed by a parliamentary panel. Asked about the replies submitted to the Supreme Court by the army chief and the ISI chief, Gilani said they were both working under the ambit of the government and their responses were routed through the Defence Ministry and the office of the Attorney General according to procedure. Replying to a query about the government's point of view on the Supreme Court's jurisdiction in the Memogate case, Gilani said this was a legal matter that has to be resolved in court. "We are not running (away from the memo issue). We are also concerned about national security," Gilani said.
