Pakistan's new PM sidelines Mush, releases sacked judges

"I order all the detained judges to be released immediately," said Gilani.

Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Hamir Amir Ali said Gilani's order had been implemented and "all the deposed judges are free to move about."

Gilani, who was appointed the Prime Minister, just a few hours ago on Saturday also ordered that the barricades around the judge's enclave be removed.

The enclave had been barricaded on President Pervez Musharraf's order. Musharraf had sacked the Chief Justice Iftikar Chaudhry and detained several judges last year after imposing Emergency in the country.

As soon as Justice Chaudhry was released many lawyers also entered the compound of his house.

A beaming Chaudhry emerged in the night on the balcony of his house, flanked by his wife and children, and waved to ecstatic supporters who had earlier helped police tear down barbed wire barricades around the house.

"I am thankful to the entire nation which has struggled for the last five months for the rule of law," Chaudhry said through a loudspeaker. Former premier Nawaz Sharif, whose PML-N is part of the new coalition, said the sacked judges will be restored within 30 days.

Commenting on the release of Justice Chaudhry, PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari told CNN-IBN, "It was the policy of PPP that all democratic norms will be followed and all arrested during Emergency will be released."

The PPP-PML-N government has already announced its intention to restore all those judges sacked by the Musharraf regime