Musharraf refutes Pak coup rumours

The denial comes a day after power cut across country, fuelled rumours of a coup against the Pak president.

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has rejected rumours of a coup against him, saying that his country was not a "banana republic", state media said on Monday.

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The rumours swept through Pakistan after a nationwide power cut on Sunday and a medical check-up he underwent in the United States, the official Associated Press of Pakistan said.

"These reports are absolute nonsense and thank God we are not a banana republic," the news agency quoted Musharraf as saying in New York, where he addressed the United Nations.

"We are a normal, stable country," he added.

General Musharraf also said he had been declared "very fit" by doctors who performed what he described as a routine check during a visit to Texas on Saturday.

A friend who is a doctor had recommended the test because he had not had one for 12 years, he added.

Army chief Musharraf seized power from Prime minister Nawaz Sharif in a bloodless coup seven years ago.