HYDERABAD, Oct 3: People’s Party Parliamentarians MNA Abdul Mujeeb Pirzada said on Wednesday that a complex situation had developed in the country after resignations by 25 per cent opposition parliamentarians which could lead to imposition of emergency or martial law in the country.

Speaking at meet the press programme at the local press club, he warned that the resignations may lead to derailment of the prevailing system and said that the situation demanded early general elections.

Mr Pirzada said that in any civilized country, if 10 per cent of legislators resign, elections were held.

He said that there was a contradiction between constitutional requirements and presidential elections through present assemblies because the existing parliament could not elect a president for another term of five years when its own term was about to end.

He said that there was no difference of opinion that Gen Pervez Musharraf could not continue as the president after November 15.

The MNA said that sympathies of his party were with those opposition lawmakers who had resigned for the sake of restoration of democracy.

He said that his party was opposed to martial law because it destroyed democratic institutions. He added that the PPP did not want martial law whereas the All Pakistan Democratic Movement did not want President Musharraf.

He said that if martial law was imposed, it would wind up the process of general elections and in case of imposition of emergency, the term of present assemblies would be extended. “People of Sindh cannot afford martial law because they don’t have representation in armed forces,” he said.

He said that Supreme Court had not closed all the doors for remedy in its recent verdict regarding the president’s two offices and added that the only issue now was the date of the president’s doffing of uniform.

He said that the PPP had challenged the president’s candidature on the ground that he could not contest the election in uniform and present parliament could not re-elect him because its term was about to expire. Mr Pirzada said that the PPP would record its protest either by tendering resignations or boycotting the presidential election on October 6.

He said that a malicious media campaign had been launched by the government regarding withdrawal of cases against Benazir Bhutto. He said that cases against Muttahida Qaumi Movement workers had been withdrawn discreetly but in the PPP’s case, the cabinet was taking a decision which would be referred to the president for promulgating an ordinance.