Mr Asif Ali Zardari was acquitted by the anti-corruption court in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, near Islamabad, in the last of seven cases that had been hanging over him for more than a decade, lawyer Farooq Naik said.

'By the grace of God he has been honorably acquitted. I am very happy today that after a struggle of 11 years the state has failed to prove any cases against Asif Ali Zardari,' Mr Naik told TV channels outside the court.

'These are all politically motivated cases. After the long darkness in the tunnel the light has finally come and we hope that in future there will be no politics of revenge.'

The case related to a BMW car which Mr Zardari had allegedly imported without paying duty.

The cases have been withdrawn as part of an amnesty given by President Pervez Musharraf last October, which allowed Bhutto to return from exile in an apparent prelude to a power-sharing deal between the two.

Bhutto was assassinated at an election rally in Rawalpindi on December 27 and Mr Zardari took over the de facto leadership of her Pakistan People's Party (PPP), leading it to victory in elections on February 18.

Mr Zardari spent eight years in prison on various corruption charges dating from Bhutto's spells as premier from 1988-1990 and 1993-1996. He was released on bail in late 2004 and was never convicted.

Bhutto fled Pakistan in 1999 for self-imposed exile in London and Dubai because of the corruption cases but always maintained that they were politically motivated.

The PPP is now forming a coalition government with the party of former premier Nawaz Sharif - the man ousted by Mr Musharraf in 1999 - after they trounced the president's allies in February 18 national polls.

PPP insiders say Mr Zardari, who did not contest the parliamentary polls, is now eyeing the prime minister's slot after the party failed to develop consensus on a candidate.

Any criminal conviction would have stopped him from contesting by-elections which are due in May. -- AFP