PESHAWAR, July 17: Rejecting the constitutional packages unveiled by the military government, the Awami National Party (ANP) has refused to hold fresh party elections.

“ANP is not a regiment of the (Pakistan) army, it is a political party and would run its affairs on political lines,” said ANP chief Asfandyar Wali Khan while addressing a press conference at ‘Bacha Khan Markaz’, the party’s headquarters, here on Tuesday.

The military government, said the ANP chief, was treating the political parties as army regiments “which would not be acceptable to the ANP”.

He said his party would not hold fresh party elections as envisaged under the Political Parties Amendment Order.

“The ANP has a set procedure and time-frame for holding party elections and the same is constantly being pursued by the party,” said Asfandyar.

He said upon completion of the two-year term of the existing officer-bearers — in May 2003 — the party would start its election process in accordance with its constitution.

“We would not hold elections before May, 2003,” said Mr Khan, who was accompanied by his party’s central leadership. The party’s high-ups had assembled in Peshawar to hold an emergency meeting of the party’s central executive committee to discuss the recently announced constitutional packages and devise the party’s line of action.

The ANP chief opposed the constitutional packages in bitter words, saying that, if adopted, these would not leave this country a federation.

“These amendments would be much more dangerous than the establishment of one-unit by the Ayub regime,” said Asfandyar, adding that the proposed constitutional amendments would come as a serious blow to the provincial autonomy enshrined under the country’s constitution.

Strongly refuting the notion that ANP had been siding with the military regime, he said if the party had been asking for resolving the Afghan crisis through Loya Jirga, urging meaningful dialogue between India and Pakistan, opposing religious extremism and terrorism, where was the logic to ask it to abandon politics because the military government was also pursuing the same agenda.

“Should I stop going to the mosque when the General is going to offer the prayers,” said the ANP chief to counter the assertion that his party was supporting the military regime.

About the Graduation clause debarring the undergraduates from contesting the elections, he said the ANP would not be hit as severely as other political outfits.

The decision would render ineligible 99.5 per cent of the country’s population for contesting the upcoming polls. “What can best be expected of a country where only 0.5 per cent of the population enjoys the right to contest the elections,” he said.