The Pakistani government confirmed today it would hold a national election by mid-January, as it came under pressure from the United States for imposing emergency rule and detaining lawyers and opposition politicians.
President Pervez Musharraf's decision to suspend the constitution and purge the Supreme Court has unleashed a torrent of international criticism.
US President George W. Bush, who values Gen Musharraf as an ally in his battle against al Qaeda and the Taliban, called for a quick return to civilian rule and the release of hundreds of detainees rounded up since Saturday.
It had been unclear whether parliamentary elections scheduled for January would go ahead, but Attorney General Malik Abdul Qayyum told Reuters: "It has been decided there would be no delay in the election and by November 15, these assemblies (national and provincial) will be dissolved and elections will be held within the next 60 days."
But it was unclear when Gen Musharraf would lift emergency rule, which he imposed on Saturday, citing a hostile judiciary and rising militancy.
Gen Musharraf, who seized power in 1999 and had been waiting for the Supreme Court to decide if his re-election as president while still army chief was valid, had to dismiss rumours sweeping the country that he had been put under house arrest.
Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said cases lying before the Supreme Court, including challenges to Gen Musharraf's re-election, had to be concluded before a parliamentary election that is supposed to transform Pakistan into a civilian-led democracy.
"We don't want to disrupt the election process. We want a free election," he told a news conference.
Many Pakistanis believe Gen Musharraf's main motive in declaring emergency rule was to pre-empt the Supreme Court's ruling on his re-election.
But security has deteriorated since July, when commandos stormed Islamabad's Red Mosque to crush an armed Islamist movement. Since then nearly 800 people have been killed in militant-linked violence, half of them by suicide attacks.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Gen Musharraf should quit the army and become a civilian leader, and hold the elections as scheduled.
The United States put future aid to Pakistan under review, having provided $10 billion in the past five years, and postponed defence talks with Pakistan due this week.