PESHAWAR, Jan 18: Blaming President Pervez Musharraf for all the ills facing the country, Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) chief Qazi Hussain Ahmad has called upon the people to stand up against former’s tyrannical rule and boycott the coming general elections.

Addressing a Juma gathering at Hayatabad here, he also appealed to the ulema to come forward and play their part to end the prevalent violence and tension, which he added, was created by the regime in the name of religion. He said that the Ummah had responsibility to avert further bloodshed in Pakistan.

He observed that the Muslims, under a well-orchestrated conspiracy, had been pitted against each other.

President Pervez Musharraf, he viewed, was in power due to his loyalty to his masters in the US adding Musharraf led killing of his own people under the garb of the so-called war on terrorism.

He claimed that the elections were a mere drama designed to legitimise the illegal measures taken of president Musharraf. The people, he said should oppose the next election for it would make no difference on their lives and would instead provide legal cover to the US policies in the country.

He was of the opinion that the US, under the policy of divide and rule, wanted to further prolong the ‘unlawful’ rule of Musharraf. He went on to say that the president had become ‘beleaguered’ as lawlessness, soaring prices of daily use items, loadshedding, shortage of electricity, gas and wheat four, had hit the country hard. He maintained that the president desperately needed another rubber stamp parliament for validating his illegal measures.

Meanwhile, a press release issued from JI’s provincial headquarters here, said that party provincial chief Sirajul Haq condemned the Thursday’s bombing at the Qissakhwani and asked the people to unite to foil the conspiracy hatched against the Muslims.

He appealed the people to follow Hazrat Imam Hussain, who he said, laid his life to end dictatorship.