ISLAMABAD, July 28: President Gen Musharraf on Sunday assured the Assistant Secretary of State Christina Rocca that the October elections will be free and fair.

“In our meetings with the President today, we discussed the upcoming elections. The president assured us that the elections would he held, and that they will be free and fair,” Assistant Secretary of State Christina Rocca told a group of politicians here at the US Embassy.

The US assistant secretary of state met the representatives of a number of Pakistan’s leading political parties here at a dinner hosted by US Charge d’Affaires William Monroe here at the U.S. Embassy.

“The United States looks forward to the holding of free and fair elections that will return the country to democratic rule,” Ms Rocca told party leaders.

She said the United States hoped to contribute to the election process by training poll watchers and providing elections observers, among other projects.

She told the group she welcomed the opportunity to discuss the upcoming elections with them and to learn their perspectives firsthand.

Those in attendance at the dinner included Raza Rabbani, Amin Fahim, Liaquat Baloch, Aftab Shiekh, Ejazul Haq, Sartaj Aziz, Ahsan Iqbal, Fakhar Imam, Syeda Abida Hussain, and Akhter Mengal.

Rashida Dohad of Asia Foundation and Mary Cummins of National Democratic Institute were also present.

“We asked Ms Rocca that every Pakistani should have the right to contest the elections,” Vice-chairperson of PPP Makhdoom Amin Fahim later told Dawn by phone.

When asked whether they raised the issue of Benazir Bhutto’s participation in the elections, he said they presented their point of view very forcefully.

As regard the proposed amendment, he said, they apprised the assistant secretary of state that these were designed to keep some political leaders out of the election process. “We call these as pre-poll rigging,” and conveyed it to Ms Rocca as well, he said.