KARACHI, Nov 4: Urging democratic forces to unite and launch a movement against the military rule, National Party Secretary-General Mir Hasil Khan Bizenjo has termed November 3 the blackest day in the history of Pakistan when Chief of the Army Staff Gen Pervez Musharraf “in the name of emergency rule virtually imposed martial law in the country”.

He was speaking at a press conference at the Karachi Press Club, accompanied by Advocate Shakil Ahmad, Mir Maula Bux Dasti and Jan Mohammad Buledi, on Sunday.

He said Saturday’s army action was aimed at pre-empting the probable verdict of the Supreme Court against the illegal and unconstitutional presidential election of Gen Musharraf.

Making an appeal to all democratic and nationalist forces, including liberal, progressive organisations, lawyers, journalists, labour unions and students bodies, he said it was high time to unite and launch a movement against the unconstitutional and illegal measures of the military rulers.

He also appealed to PPP Chairperson Benazir Bhutto and PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif to jointly lead the movement by pursuing their accord on the charter of democracy.

He said the army action had directly targeted the media and the judiciary, terminating the services of Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry and many other conscientious judges of the Supreme and high courts, and imposing a total ban on the media.

Mr Bizenjo recalled that during the last 60 years, the military and civil bureaucracy had been ruling the country with the help of intelligence agencies, and sometimes directly in the form of martial law with the cooperation of quasi-democratic governments. But it was for the first time in the history of the country that the judiciary had challenged the undemocratic and illegal measures of the military rulers by deciding the cases independently in accordance with their conscience while the media played an important role by helping the democratic struggle move forward. He said all this was not liked by the military and civil bureaucracy who had once again trampled the sacred institution of the Supreme Court.

He said for the role played by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry and other judges of the Supreme and high courts and the lawyers fraternity, all democratic and nationalists forces and people of the country saluted them.

Pointing out that November 3 would always be remembered as an unusual day of the parliamentary democratic movement as the constitution was held in abeyance while both constitutional institutions, the national assembly and the senate, were intact. He said it was the biggest joke in the political and parliamentary democratic history of the world.

Mr Bizenjo said that now it was quite clear that the army was not prepared to give up powers in any situation.

He said that the biggest allegation against the judiciary was that it was building pressure on the intelligence agencies for the recovery of the missing political workers.

He said in the current situation the unity of all political parties was the need of the hour for launching a movement against the unconstitutional and illegal actions of the military rulers.

In reply to a question, he said the Lahore Press Club where a meeting of representatives of civil society was in session was sealed and HRCP leaders I.A. Rehman, Dr Mubashir Hasan and Imtiaz Alam were arrested, while in Quetta Mehmood Khan Achakzai, Rauf Mengal, Habib Jalib and Kashkol Ali were among the political leaders arrested.

Answering another question, he said his party wanted to take along all leaders who were against the military rule, including Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif. He said before coming to the press conference he had talked to PML-N leaders Zafar Iqbal Jhagra and Raja Zafarul Haq in this connection and he would also try to contact the PPP leadership.