18 October 2004	Monday	03 Ramazan 1425

LAHORE, Oct 17: The opposition parties have no tentative plan ready to follow suit of PAT's Dr Tahirul Qadri, who had announced resignation from his National Assembly seat on Friday as a protest against approval of the dual-office bill.

PML-N's Khwaja Saad Rafiq says the opposition MPs will tender resignation "only when they are sure that the incumbent government is unable to hold 'bogus' polls to fill the seats vacated by them."

The step would be inter-related with the movement (against Gen Musharraf's uniform) outside parliament, he told a press conference here on Sunday.

Saying a decisive round for struggle against army dictatorship was on the anvil, he told reporters that the Alliance for Restoration of Democracy (ARD) had so far planned four big public meetings after Eidul Fitr.

Talks with the religious parties' alliance, MMA, were also on to launch a joint anti-Musharraf movement, he said, believing that both the alliances would go together till the ouster of the army ruler.

The opposition reserved the right to utilize all constitutional and legal tactics in its movement, he said, implying that it flouted any ban to be imposed on political or religious gatherings by the government.

Mr Rafiq told a questioner that the opposition would not move the Supreme Court in this struggle because its decisions were not being implemented. He quoted the example of PML-N president Shahbaz Sharif, who had been allowed to return home but the government did not accept the decision on May 11 last.

Mr Rafiq claimed that there were reports that Gen Musharraf was planning to dissolve parliament after it loses its utility in his eyes.

About the "removal from office" motion against NA speaker, Mr Rafiq, who is also an MNA, said Amir Husain would be voted out if the government did not bar treasury members from taking part in the voting process.

"Many treasury MNAs are annoyed with the government and will vote against the speaker in the secret ballot if they are allowed to take part in voting."

He said Gen Musharraf's attempt to keep both the offices had resulted in combining the opposition dispersed since the adopting of the 17th amendment. Information secretary Zaeem Qadri and Nasir Iqbal were also present.