Finally Declared........!!

Three days after former Pakistan premier Benazir Bhutto was assassinated, her son Bilawal has been named the chairman of the Pakistan People's Party.

The decision comes after a high-level meeting of the PPP members in Larkana, where the post funeral services took place for the slain leader.

Bhutto's husband Asif Zardari and Abdul Makhdoom Fahim, deputy leader of PPP have been named co-chairmen of the party.

Speaking at an emotionally charged press conference, Zardari said that Benazir had named him as her political successor.

However, Zardari said he wanted his son Bilawal to take charge of the party.

Zardari said Fahim will be the prime ministerial candidate of the party. He also urged Nawaz Sharif not to boycott elections.

''From now on my son's name will be Bilawal Bhutto Zardari,'' he said.

Putting forward a composed look, 19-year-old Bilawal said, ''My mother used to say democracy is the best revenge.''

Amid loud sloganeering by Bhutto supporters, Zardari sought an international probe into the murder of the two time prime minister.

In a telling statement, Bilawal added his mother's surname to his own and is now to be addressed as Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.

Meanwhile, while all eyes are on Bilawal Bhutto, his estranged cousins Fatima and Zulfikar Bhutto junior are slowly building up their political profiles.

The children of Benazir's brother Murtaza have often been publicly critical of Benazir's politics.

Managing Editor Barkha Dutt in Larkana in Pakistan, Fatima Bhutto said she mourned her aunt as a family member but would express her political differences through her writing instead of party politics.

Successor Of Bhutto...??

Just a few days after the former Prime Minister of Pakistan -- Benazir Bhutto -- was assassinated, speculation is rife about who will be the possible successor to take over the PPP's reins. Benazir Bhutto, the charasmatic leader and an international figure, who perhaps was the only one who could actually give Musharraf back a challenge at the elecions, has left the party rudderless as she was symbolic with the Pakistan's People Party.

However, the moot question of Benazir's successor might be answered on Sunday (Dec 30) when her son -- Bilawal -- will read Benazir's will, which might throw some light over the party's probable future leader.

Meanwhile, rumours are abuzz that a family member could take over the PPP's reins, however, the million dollar question is will the senior party leaders accept.

Asif Zardari, Benazir Bhutto's husband had said:"Benazir Bhutto has left a message for the party and she has left a will and we will make it public on Sunday (Dec 30)." He had further added:"We have called for a meeting and her will and the instructions will be read out there."

The Will according to Zardari will be read out by Bhutto's son Bilawal, perhaps an indication that he could take over the reigns of the party, however, the age does not side Bhutto's 19-year old son, who is still a novice in politics.

The more likely candidate, Bhutto's husband, Asif Zardari, who was the former Interior Minster and is better known as Mr 10 percent has been embroiled in numerous corruption cases. And thus, the PPP might not want a face with a murky past to lead them at this juncture.

We give you a lowdown on the probable Benazir's successor

-- Asif Ali Zardari -- Benazir's husband : The sentiment factor might work in his favor as people might see him as having suffered personally, however, a huge factor that might work against him is the graft charges. The man is infamously referred to as Mr 10 per cent in Pakistani political circles.

-- Makhdoom Amin Fahim : He is the oldest party worker in the running and is seen to be a Bhutto confidante, however, he lacks public persona, and of course, the magical Bhutto family name.

-- Chaudhary Aitzaz Ahsan: He is a prominent lawyer and has been the face of the anti-Musharraf protests. He also enjoys a mass following. However, he was seen defying Benazir's authority during the anti-emergency agitation.

-- Bilawal -- Benazir's son : He is thought to display a political maturity beyond his 19 years but he may still be too young to lead a party of the size of PPP. Moreover, he has not spent much of his life in Pakistan, which might go against him.

-- Fatima Bhutto -- Benazir's niece: Another bearer of the Bhutto family legacy, she is seen to be a politically mature person. However, she had been a staunch critic of Benazir Bhutto in the recent months and is too young to lead the PPP.

-- Sanam Bhutto, Benazir's sister -- She has not evinced an interest in politics till date

What Went Really..............???

Serious questions are being raised over Pakistan government's theory on Benazir Bhutto's assassination. While earlier reports indicated that Benazir Bhutto died of bullet wounds, the Pakistan government hours later denied those reports with Pakistani interior ministry spokesperson Brigadier Javed Iqbal Cheema said yesterday that "There should be no ambiguity about Benazir's death - there were bullet wounds...It was a jolt after her head hit the vehicle lever."

However a top aide to the slain opposition leader Benazir Bhutto has rejected the government's explanation of her death as a "pack of lies".

Farooq Naik, Ms Bhutto's top lawyer and a senior official in her Pakistan People's Party, says that the government's claims that Bhutto was not hit by any bullets is completely baseless.

He says:

"Two bullets hit her, one in the abdomen and one in the head. Bhutto's personal secretary Naheed Khan and party official Makhdoom Amin Fahim were in the car and they saw what happened.... they (government) are turning it into a joke with such claims.'"

I bathed her body, saw the bullet wound

A close aide to Benazir Bhutto said today she saw a bullet wound in the Pakistani opposition
leader's head when she bathed her body after her assassination.

Butto's spokeswoman Sherry Rehman, who said she was in the former premier's motorcade at the time of the gun and suicide attack, rejected government claims that the death was caused when Bhutto's head hit her sunroof.

"I was actually part of the party which bathed her body before the funeral," said Rehman, who added that her car was used to transport Bhutto to hospital.

"There was a bullet wound I saw that went in from the back of her head and came out the other side. We could not even wash her properly because the wound was still seeping. She lost a huge amount of blood," she told AFP.

Rehman accused the government of mounting a cover-up over Bhutto's death.

"The hospital was made to change its statement. They never gave a proper report," she said.

"I believe the interior ministry is saying that she died from some concussion that may have taken place against the sunroof.

"This is ridiculous, dangerous nonsense because it is a cover-up of what actually happened."

Benazir raised questions on government link

The question is who is Baitullah Mehsud, the al Qaeda commander the Pakistan government is blaming the assassination on.

Benazir Bhutto, before returning to Pakistan had mentioned that she was receiving threats from him, even indictaing that he had strong links with the Pakistani government.

She said:

"I am not worried about Baitullah Masood. I am worried about the threat within the government. People like Baitullah Masood are just pawns. It is those forces behind him that have presided over the rise of extremism and militancy in my country."

"I did not kill her"

Meanwhile Mehsud accused by the Pakistani government on Friday (December 28) of masterminding Bhutto's assasination has completely denied any involvement.

"I strongly deny it. Tribal people have their own customs. We don't strike women," Mehsud's spokesman Maulvi Omar said by telephone from an undisclosed location.