LAHORE, July 5: The Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy decided here on Saturday to step up its struggle against the present system and deny the army a share in power as envisaged in the National Security Council.

To achieve this goal in the shortest possible time, the coalition decided to work like the defunct Pakistan National Alliance and launch a train march, taking some more allies with it.

PML-N President Makhdoom Javed Hashmi said after a meeting of the heads of the ARD’s components that the concept of the army’s role in governance was alien to the parliamentary system and the opposition alliance would not accept it.

The idea of a broad-based opposition alliance and turning the heat on the system, rather than the government, is expected to come under discussion at an all-party conference the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal is hosting at Mansoora on Sunday.

The ARD will participate in the conference along with many other invitees. It is said that a proposal is also under consideration that the two alliances should hold a joint public meeting on August 14.

Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan, who presided over the meeting, expressed surprise over the disqualification of an MMA MNA on the basis of educational qualifications after the government’s numerous aborted attempts to entice the religious parties alliance with offers that they would be given offices of deputy prime minister and NA speaker.

He said the disqualification was ludicrous also because Gen Musharraf himself had been saying that while he was not ready to share the table with the PPP and the PML-N, he was willing to hold talks with the MMA.

The ARD president reiterated that the alliance’s stand on the LFO remained unchanged.

In reply to a question, the Nawabzada said a decision to re-induct the ANP into the ARD “has almost” been taken.

Two committees, one for the mass contact programme and the other to determine the quantum of maximum provincial autonomy within the parameters of the 1973 Constitution, were also set up.