Islamabad  - Pakistan's election commission on Monday put off June 18 by-elections for eight weeks, a decision the country's ruling coalition condemned as a conspiracy against the newly elected government.

"The election date has been extended to August 18 due to security reasons and the preparation of the budget by parliament," a statement from the commission said.

The polls were scheduled to be held for eight national assembly seats and 30 provincial seats.

The voting in some of these constituencies was delayed at the February 18 elections owing to militant violence, and some seats were vacated when the candidates who had won two had to choose one, as the law requires.

By-elections are crucial for some senior leaders from the ruling coalition, which formed the government after thrashing political backers of dictator-turned-civilian President Pervez Musharraf in the main polls.

Among them is Asif Ali Zardari, the widower of slain former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and the head of her Pakistan People's Party (PPP), which won the majority of seats in polls.

He is planning to run in by-elections that would take him into parliament and eventually to the office of prime minister.

"PPP is surprised and dismayed over the decision and the party co- chairman Asif Ali Zardari has condemned the decision of this postponement," party spokesman Farhatullah Babar told Dawn news channel.

Information Minister Shari Rehman, a PPP leader, said neither the government nor any political party was consulted prior to the decision by the election commission.

The protest also came from a second major coalition partner, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, whose senior leader Shahbaz Sharif submitted his nomination papers for a provincial seat on Monday morning.

"The reasons given for the postponement are unbelievable. The security situation has improved considerably since the formation of the new government," party spokesman Siddiqul Farooq said.

It seems to be one among the series of conspiracies hatched in the president's camp against the coalition government and our party, he added.

Shahbaz was not allowed to contest the February election for the reason that some cases were pending against him in the law courts.

But terming the charges politically motivated, Shahbaz suspected the ban was manoeuvred by Musharraf who ousted his elder brother Nawaz Sharif in a bloodless military coup in 1999.

The two brothers were then sent into exile for several years, which ended only late last year.

The by-election delays come as the coalition partners have set a deadline of May 12 to restore more than 60 judges Musharraf deposed on November 3 in a bid to prevent an expected Supreme Court ruling against his re-election for another five-year term.

When reinstated the judges could revoke his handpicked justices' approval of the term, a possibility that analysts believe is worrying the embattled president these days. (dpa)