Pakistan former premier Benazir Bhutto on Wednesday said her talks with President Pervez Musharraf on a possible power-sharing deal were “totally stalled” and dismissed as a “disinformation campaign” reports of amnesty to her over corruption cases.

Bhutto, who plans to return home from self-imposed exile on October 18, told reporters in London: “The present regime cannot salvage the situation... I’m afraid we are heading for a situation that could lead to street agitation.” However, Bhutto, 54, again vowed to return to Pakistan irrespective of the outcome of the talks.

Her comments came a day after a Cabinet meeting presided over by Premier Shaukat Aziz decided to drop the corruption charges against Bhutto.

Dismissing the amnesty offer, Bhutto said the news that corruption charges have been dropped is designed “to cause controversy and confusion... to distract from the real issues” like free elections, restoring the rule of law and reviving the economy.

Musharraf, who is seeking re-election in uniform in the October 6 presidential poll, “is not prepared to give a full immunity bill and he is not prepared to lift the ban on a twice-elected prime minister,” Ms Bhutto, the chief of Pakistan Peoples Party said.

“He is not prepared to bring about election reforms that are necessary for a fair election, he is not prepared to bring about a balance of power between the presidency and the prime minister,” she said.

It’s up to her: govt

However, Islamabad has said that the fate of a proposed power-sharing deal with Benazir Bhutto lay in her hands.

“The government is prepared for indemnity (for Bhutto) and the ball is now in the court of the Opposition party,” Information Minister Muhammad Ali Durrani told AFP, referring to Bhutto’s Pakistan Peoples Party. “We expect a positive response to the offer of indemnity.”

Meanwhile, the Interpol has put the government in a fix by enquiring about Bhutto’s status.

“The Interpol headquarters in Lyon, France, has asked the government of Pakistan if Bhutto is still a wanted person as its database at the general secretariat indicated and if the red notice against the PPP leader was still valid,” Pakistani newspaper Dawn reported on Wednesday, quoting an unnamed source as saying.