PESHAWAR, Sept 29: Representatives of various civil society groups have asked President Gen Pervez Musharraf to quit the army post by Dec 31 as it was vital for the promotion of democracy in the country.

Speaking at a seminar here on Wednesday, they held political parties responsible for the failure of democracy in the country and for subsequent military rules. The event entitled 'Pakistan, Democracy and Uniform', was jointly organized by the Peshawar Press Club and a joint action committee.

Speaking on the occasion, Senator Farhatullah Babar of the People's Party Parliamentarians (PPP) said his party had tabled a bill in the Senate which called for holding trial of those who had violated the 1973 constitution for treason. Any member of parliament should have the powers to bring cases against people who violated the constitution.

He criticized the amendments made to the constitution with the help of judiciary on the directives of military rulers and said that judiciary should not have powers to make amendments to the constitution under the garb of the doctrine of necessity.

Mr Babar said two former prime ministers were living in exile which showed that they were paying the price for their failure to deliver in a democratic set-up, but unfortunately no military general had ever faced accountability for his actions.

Democratic institutions should be made strong instead of an individual, he said and added that President Pervez Musharraf did not fulfil the political, constitutional or legal criteria for becoming the president.

Former interior minister Naseerullah Babar said the army should not get involved in politics as the bitter experience of 1971 clearly demonstrated the consequences of involvement of army in politics.

ARD's secretary-general Zafar Iqbal Jhagra in his speech said that his alliance supported those who worked for democracy in the country and opposed those who took dictation from abroad on the issues of national interest.

He said parliament should be made supreme instead of the rule of one man. Parliament was not complete unless it was given full powers. He said the ARD and the MMA jointly launched a campaign against the president's uniform but his alliance parted ways with the MMA when it adopted the 17th amendment which was the root-cause of all problems.

Mr Jhagra said even if Gen Musharraf shed his uniform now he could not qualify for president ship as a government servant could not contest for a public office for two years after vacating his post. He said there should be a democratic government instead of military rule. Uniform should be abandoned and constitutional requirements should be fulfilled, he added.

Dr Saidur Rehman, a representative of the Pukhtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party and Ponam (Pakistan Oppressed Nations Movement), said the country was not being ruled under the 1973 Constitution but by a military man and democracy could not be established until parliament was made supreme.

Other speakers were of the view that the president should shed the uniform. They demanded that political parties should play their role in this respect so that democracy could prevail in the country.

Event coordinator Shakil Waheedullah said that Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Qazi Hussain Ahmed, Asfandyar Wali Khan and Salim Saifullah were also invited but could not come due to unknown reasons.