ISLAMABAD, July 28: The Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (ARD) has formally contacted the Muttahida Majlis-i- Amal (MMA) to seek its cooperation in the election campaign against Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz in Attock, sources told Dawn here on Wednesday.

According to the sources, former PPP MPA Malik Hakmin Khan, who has been appointed as the ARD's coordinator for the election campaign, on Wednesday talked to opposition leader and MMA's secretary general Maulana Fazlur Rahman on telephone and asked him to join the ARD in its election rally in Attock.

They said Maulana Fazlur Rahman had assured Mr Hakmin that the MMA would fully cooperate with the ARD in the election campaign against Shaukat Aziz. The sources said Maulana Fazal had told Mr Hakmin that the local MMA leadership would fully support ARD candidate Dr Sikandar Hayat in Attock.

This is the first formal contact between the ARD and the MMA after the decision of the religious alliance to withdraw its candidates in favour of the ARD in Attock and Tharparkar for the August 18 by-polls. The MMA withdrew the candidates when PPP Secretary General Raja Pervez Ashraf held a meeting with Hafiz Hussain Ahmed and requested him to support the ARD.

Earlier, both the ARD and the MMA had refused to contact each other, and nominated their candidates separately in both the constituencies. Despite repeated attempts, Maulana Fazlur Rahman could not be contacted for his comments.

Hafiz Hussain Ahmed, when contacted, expressed his ignorance about the latest contact between the two major opposition alliances as, he said, that he had not met Maulana Fazlur Rahman in the evening.