14 PPP, PML men released on bail: Nawabzada opposes referendum
By Amjad Mahmood
LAHORE, March 24: Fourteen activists of the PPP and the PML (N) arrested by police for trying to hold a meeting of the Alliance for Restoration of Democracy (ARD) at Mochi Gate on Saturday were bailed out here on Sunday.
The police had registered cases against these activists and arrested them along with hundreds of others.
PPP leaders Ms Naheed Khan, Dr Safdar Abbasi, Qasim Zia, Munir Ahmad Khan and Haji Azizur Rahman Chan were present on the district courts premises during the hearing of bail plea of the arrested workers.
Interestingly, no PML (N) leader was present on the occasion to submit surety bonds for the six arrested party workers as PPP leaders submitted the bonds for them too.
The dejected PML (N) workers, after their bail plea was accepted, offered their ‘cooperation’ to the PPP leaders but the latter directed them to keep working for their party as they did not want to harm their ally (PML-N) in the ARD.
Meanwhile, ARD chief Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan has decided to challenge his externment in the Lahore High Court.
For the purpose he has directed a local lawyer to prepare a petition which is likely to be filed in the court on Tuesday.
Talking to Dawn by phone from his Khangarh residence, the Nawabzada said the government had lost its credibility among the masses by not allowing the ARD to hold a public meeting on Yaum-i-Pakistan.
He said the step had also exposed the army government’s claim that it had not suspended basic rights of the people as freedom of assembly was also a basic right provided in the Constitution.
Answering a question about the government’s permission to the Jamaat-i-Islami to hold a meeting in Rawalpindi on March 23, he said he was happy that at least some parties were allowed to celebrate the occasion.
He said he did not feel that the Jamaat had struck any clandestine deal with the government due to which it was permitted to hold its meeting.
As a follow-up of the March 23 meeting, which was thwarted by the government, the ARD leaders have decided to hold another meeting on April 7 in Quetta.
PPI ADDS: Rejecting as unconstitutional the move to hold referendum to legitimize Gen Musharraf’s tenure as president, the Nawabzada said it was for the coming parliament to elect a president.
He said a false impression was being created that the government was going to transfer powers to the civilians. The fact however was that all powers were being concentrated in one person, he added.
He said it was inappropriate to seek the political seat through a referendum in a democratic country. “Referendums are not held in any country for political offices. They are held on issues,” the Nawabzada observed.
