Pakistan government loses its majority

[malaise]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-12105507
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Pakistan's MQM party says it is leaving Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani's coalition to join the opposition.

The move will deprive Mr Gilani of his majority in parliament.

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement, the second largest party in the coalition, withdrew two ministers from the federal cabinet last week.

Mr Gilani denied there his government was in danger of collapsing. "I don't see any crisis," he said, speaking on television after the announcement.

The BBC's Aleem Maqbool in Islamabad says the government is now scrambling to find new partners, but that without them, new elections are likely.