Chowrangi

August 1943: Born in Delhi, India.

1964: Joins Pakistani army.

1998: Becomes army chief of staff.

October 1999: Seizes power in a bloodless military coup, overthrowing the prime minister, Nawaz Sharif. In response, the Commonwealth suspends Pakistan’s membership.

June 20 2001: Makes himself president, replacing Rafiq Tarar, while remaining head of the army. Tarar is forced out of office when the parliament that elected him is dissolved.

July 2001: Holds first meeting with the Indian prime minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, at Agra in India. No progress is made because of differences over the disputed territory of Kashmir.

September 2001: George Bush courts Musharraf, asking him to join him in his “war on terror” and help defeat the Taliban in neighbouring Afghanistan. The US president promises Pakistan $1bn in aid.

April 2002: Wins a referendum giving him another five years in office. Observers criticise the referendum as blighted by irregularities.

May 2002: Pakistan test fires three medium-range surface-to-surface missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. Musharraf insists his country would not be the one to initiate war.

August 2002: Consolidates his power still further, giving himself the right to dismiss an elected parliament.

October 2002: Pakistan’s first general election since Musharraf seized power in 1999 results in a hung parliament.

November 2002: Mir Zafarullah Jamali becomes the first civilian prime minister since 1999. He is a member of a Musharraf-supporting party.

November 2003: Pakistan’s National Assembly meets for the first time since 1999.

December 2003: Musharraf promises to step down as head of the army by January 2005.

May 2004: Pakistan is readmitted to the Commonwealth.

December 2004: Musharraf announces he will stay on as head of the army.

August 2005: Pakistan tests its first nuclear-capable cruise missile.

March 2007: Musharraf suspends the chief justice, Iftakar Mohammed Chaudhry, triggering a wave of anger across the country and the first joint protests held by the parties of exiled former prime ministers Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif.

October 2007: Signs a corruption amnesty, opening the way for Bhutto’s return and a possible power-sharing agreement. Within hours of Bhutto’s arrival back in the country, bombers attack a Bhutto rally in Karachi, killing more than 100 people.

November 2007: Declares a state of emergency, rounding up opposition leaders at gunpoint. In the same month, Musharraf quits as head of the army, becoming a civilian president.

December 15 2007: Lifts state of emergency and announces plans to go ahead with parliamentary elections scheduled for January 8.

December 27 2007: Benazir Bhutto is assassinated at an election rally in Rawalpindi.

January 2008: Elections postponed until February 18.

February 2008: The two main opposition parties gain a clear majority in the elections.

August 2008: The two main parties strike a deal to impeach Musharraf if parliament backs the move.

August 18 2008: Musharraf announces his resignation

Source : News

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