ISLAMABAD, July 26: The government has set in motion a process of getting the tenure of present assemblies extended by one year and making preparations for setting up an interim government to hold the general election, well-placed sources told Dawn.

The sources said a number of options were now before the government to get out of the present predicament and to secure maximum political support by making visible changes in the administration.

The sources said President Pervez Musharraf had also made up his mind about relinquishing the post of the Chief of the Army Staff before the end of current year, but not before making sure that he was re-elected for the next term by present assemblies.

The sources said that authorities concerned had prepared a list of 35 prominent personalities for picking up a team for the interim set-up. Names of these personalities have been forwarded to intelligence agencies for security clearance.

The list contains names of mostly old politicians, retired generals, retired bureaucrats, intellectuals, economists and lawyers.

Some prominent names on the list include Dr Ishrat Hussain, Ahmed Raza Kasuri, Sahibzada Yaqoob Ali Khan, Gen (retd) Khalid Mehmood Arif, Abdur Razaq Daud and Dr Zubair.