LAHORE, May 11: ARD deputy information secretary Munir Ahmad Khan has urged the Commonwealth secretary-general to restore Pakistan’s membership of the body after confirming that the military authorities have restored real democracy in the country.

The Commonwealth had suspended Pakistan’s membership after Oct 12, 1999, army takeover.

Through a letter sent to the secretary-general on Sunday, Mr Khan reminded him that the current civil setup in Pakistan had emerged after rigged elections in October last.

Rigging before and after the elections had also been confirmed by international media and other foreign teams that had monitored the process, he alleged.

All state machinery was used to change loyalties of the opposition MPs. The maiden session of the National Assembly was not convened while the laws barring defections were kept suspended until the task was not completed, he said.

Under the Constitution, parliament was the sole authority to amend the basic law but the army dictator unilaterally amended it by declaring the LFO as part of it, he added.

He reminded the world body that the EU parliament had also declared by 400 to 3 votes that by inducting the LFO into the Constitution, parliament cannot be declared as an independent and sovereign body.

As Gen Pervez Musharraf in uniform was calling the shots in Pakistan, the Commonwealth must press the restoration of real democracy in the country before restoring its membership, he pleaded.