ISLAMABAD - Pakistan's purged Supreme Court demolished the final hurdle to President Pervez Musharraf's re-election Thursday, paving the way for him to become a civilian leader after eight years of army rule.

Packed with loyalist judges who approved Musharraf's declaration of a state of emergency, the court took less than an hour to dismiss a challenge to his victory in last month's contested presidential vote.

Musharraf had vowed to quit as army chief and be sworn in for another five years as soon as his re-election was ratified -- although officials said he would likely wait until early next week to take the oath.

"The petition is dismissed," chief justice Abdul Hameed Dogar ruled.

General Musharraf, who seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999, has faced intense pressure led by the United States to end emergency rule, quit the army, ensure the general elections are fair and free political prisoners.

Pakistan's attorney-general, Malik Mohammad Qayyum, said Musharraf and the election commission both had to wait for the court to give a written judgment. The chief justice has promised to issue it on Friday.

"My assessment is that he will take oath as civilian president early next week. The chief justice will administer the oath," said Qayyum.

Musharraf's chief legal adviser, Sharifuddin Pirzada, told reporters there was "now no impediment to the election commission issuing a notification" to formally announce the winner of the October 6 presidential vote.

The Supreme Court had already Monday swatted away five main challenges to Musharraf's victory.

The appeals argued that he was ineligible to stand because he was army chief and that the vote should not have been conducted by the outgoing parliament, which was dissolved last week ahead of January 8 elections.

The court adjourned a hearing on a challenge against emergency rule until Friday, although that too is likely to be dismissed.

Musharraf, wearing a suit instead of his uniform, appeared cheerful earlier in the day when state television showed him swearing in caretaker ministers.

Presidential spokesman Major General Rashid Qureshi said that Musharraf had pledged to hand over the reins of the 500,000-strong army "immediately" after his election win was confirmed.

"The president himself has said repeatedly that he has made up his mind to quit his army post and take the oath as a civilian president as soon as his election victory is notified," Qureshi told AFP before the ruling.

"There is no change in that plan. He will abide by that commitment and will immediately take the oath."

In a bid to show the emergency is easing, authorities freed cricket hero Imran Khan late Wednesday, and said more than 5,000 lawyers, opposition party workers and human rights activists had also been released.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said overnight the releases were a "good step" but that more action was required.

The Supreme Court's ousted judges remain under house arrest.

Musharraf had cited the battle against Islamic militancy and an interfering judiciary as the reasons for imposing emergency rule.

International pressure on Musharraf was set to increase later Thursday with the Commonwealth due to decide whether to suspend Pakistan from the 53-nation grouping.

Pakistan's opposition, meanwhile, was trying to make up its mind on whether to boycott the elections in less than two months' time.

All eyes were on former premier Benazir Bhutto, leader of Pakistan's main opposition party, who must to decide whether to shun what she says will be a flawed election, or give up her seats in parliament.

Khan -- who has his tiny party's only seat in parliament -- urged her to pull out of the polls.

"What we want from all political parties is a total boycott of the election because these are fraudulent elections," he said.