Pakistan's main opposition party on Friday announced an end to its regional alliance with the ruling party in protest over widespread corruption, dpa reported.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) said it would expel the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) from the cabinet of the country's biggest province, Punjab, at the end of a 45-day deadline to root out graft.
"We are today parting our ways, and we will behave as two opponent parties in Punjab," said Nawaz Sharif, former two-time premier and head of the PML-N.
"The central government has done nothing to implement the 10-point agenda to improve governance," Nawaz said, referring to a list of PML-N demands given to the government.
The central government, led by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, has been rocked by a number of financial scandals, including one involving his son, Abdul Qadir Gilani.
The PPP, led by President Asif Ali Zardari, rejected the allegation that it had done nothing to fight corruption and improve the economy.
"We made substantial progress on all 10 points put forward by the opposition," said Raza Rabbani, a leading PPP lawmaker.
The PPP and PML-N emerged as Pakistan's two major parties after 2008 elections and formed coalition governments in Islamabad and Punjab.
The PML-N left the central government after a few weeks because of differences over the restoration of judges removed by the former military ruler Pervez Musharraf, but it maintained its alliance with the PPP in Punjab.
However, it came under pressure to stop behaving as a "friendly opposition" and bring more pressure on the ruling party to improve the economy and deteriorating law and order.
The fresh tensions between the two parties came at a critical juncture as the country faces severe financial and security problems. They could prove disastrous for Pakistan's fragile democracy, which was restored after nine years of military rule
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