ISLAMABAD, May 8: The Supreme Council of Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) on Tuesday rejected the idea of imposition of emergency floated by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and decided to propose the formation of a national consultative conference of all opposition parties to work out a plan to counter government’s moves against democracy.

The supreme council which met here under Qazi Hussain Ahmed, the alliance’s president, urged Gen Pervez Musharraf to immediately relinquish the offices of the president and army chief, and said he should appoint a new chief of army staff and ask Senate chairman Muhammedmian Soomro to take over as acting president of an interim government of national consensus.

Talking to reporters at his residence, Qazi Hussain said elections should be held under the interim government after the appointment of an independent election commission, adding that it was the only way to steer the country out of the worst-ever judicial and political crisis.

The council decided to finalise a date for convening the consultative conference after talks with various political parties.

The council vowed to resist the imposition of emergency or any attempt of takeover by a new general, like Yahya Khan.

MMA leader Liaquat Baloch said that the alliance would contact all opposition parties, including the PPP, despite the latter’s deliberate attempt to distance itself from other opposition parties.

He said the MMA’s workers would participate in protest demonstrations in Karachi on May 12 when Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry would be in the city to address lawyers.

The alliance decided that rallies would be held in Punjab on May 27, 28 and 29 to accelerate the protest campaign against the presidential reference. Their schedule would be announced later by the steering committee. More rallies will be held between June 26 and June 28 in Punjab to mobilise people against the government’s undermining of the judiciary’s sanctity.

Members of the six-party council decided to visit Dera Ismail Khan on May 10 and 20 to review the law and order situation, particularly in the context of sectarianism and militancy.

The alliance maintained that extremism and militancy were being promoted by the government under a plan to malign religious parties and said it was the responsibility of the religious alliance to counter such moves.