ISLAMABAD, March 29: President Gen Pervez Musharraf held a meeting here on Friday with a six-member delegation of the Pakistan Muslim League (J), led by Hamid Nasir Chattha, as part of the continuing consultative process on important national issues.

During the meeting, the discussion focussed on the general election scheduled to be held in October and the government’s initiatives to introduce political reforms and revive the economy.

Talking to the delegation, President Musharraf stressed the need for evolving a political system to ensure that democracy took its roots and the country was not held hostage to individual interests.

He said it was of utmost importance that national interests were kept supreme over personal or party interests.

Various options for ensuring continuation of the policies and the programmes launched by the government, reforms and restructuring process, the check and balance system among power centres, provincial harmony and economic revival also came under discussion.

Talking to newsmen after the meeting, Mr Chattha appreciated the government’s reforms, and said he would discuss and analyze the proposals discussed at his party meeting before taking a final decision.

The delegation included Sardar Asif Ahmed Ali, Sardar Talib Nakai, Armaghan Subhani, Saeed Zafar Pandiar and Zahid Sarfraz. —APP