ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN - President Pervez Musharraf fought back Friday against politicians who asserted he would resign rather than face impeachment charges, saying through his chief political supporter that he would challenge the charges when they were brought to the parliament.

Politicians across all parties, however, characterized the public insistence by Musharraf, a former military man, as a kind of last stand, a bravura performance that could not be maintained under the political reality that almost all of his support has evaporated.

The army, which remains the most revered institution in Pakistan, did not want impeachment proceedings to begin, fearing it would tarnish the institution, several politicians said.

In an interview, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, the chairman of Musharraf's party, the Pakistan Muslim League-Q, said the president would deal with the charges "in a democratic spirit and in accordance with the constitution."

Hussain, whose party holds 51 of 342 seats in the National Assembly, added: "Let them bring the charges. So far they haven't brought any charges."

But politicians up and down the political spectrum, including some from Musharraf's party, said Friday that they doubted Musharraf would actually appear in parliament to respond to the charges. It was clear, they said, he could not prevail in a vote.

Leaders of the two major parties in the coalition government announced last week they would seek Musharraf's impeachment on charges that include illegally suspending the constitution and imposing emergency rule last November and wrongly dismissing 60 judges under that decree.

The minister of information, Sherry Rehman, said Friday a drafting panel had completed a charge sheet against Musharraf. She did not specify the charges and did not give a specific date when the coalition planned to present the charges to parliament.

The decision not to announce a date for the presentation of charges was apparently designed to leave the door open for continuing negotiations on how Musharraf should exit, and the terms of immunity from prosecution that he is seeking.

Musharraf served as both president and chief of the army from October 1999 until last November. He staged a coup against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in 1999. Sharif is now the leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-N, the minority partner in the coalition government and the chief instigator of the effort to impeach the president.

The new army chief, Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, has repeatedly said he wanted to keep the army out of politics. He appeared to be scrupulously sticking to his pledge during the current crisis.

The army was opposed to Musharraf contesting the impeachment charges, in part, because the resulting debate could disclose information that could be deeply embarrassing, said Ishaq Khan Khakwani, a member of the central executive committee of the Pakistan Muslim League-Q.

"Impeachment means disgrace, and the army would not like to see their institution humiliated," said Khakwani, a former supporter of the president.

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