Islamabad, Jan 17 (IANS): Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president Nawaz Sharif has said Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani should accept the court orders if he believes in democracy. He said the situation wouldn't have worsened if Gilani had acted upon the advice of his party.

He was reacting to Gilani's announcement to appear before the Supreme Court Jan 19. The apex court had ordered him to personally appear before it.

Gilani offered to resign Monday after the Supreme Court issued him a contempt notice for not implementing a directive to act against President Asif Ali Zardari for corruption.

Nawaz said the situation would not have worsened if the government had acted upon the advice of his party, The Nation reported.

The judges who endorsed the "unconstitutional steps of dictators" should also be held accountable, the paper quoted Nawaz as saying.

Zardari, accused of graft, had been granted amnesty under the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO), which was issued in 2007 by then president Pervez Musharraf to facilitate the return of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and her husband Zardari. The NRO was struck down as void by the Supreme Court in 2009.