ISLAMABAD July 10: Ulema and office-bearers of Wafaqul Madaris, led by Mufti Rafi Usmani, who took part in the last-ditch negotiations with Abdul Rashid Ghazi on Monday night, have held President Gen Pervez Musharraf responsible for the failure of talks.

The ulema claimed on Tuesday that President Musharraf had completely changed the draft agreement, which had been formulated after several hours. However, the leader of the government team and PML President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain defended the official position. He said the draft was only given a “legal shape” and not changed drastically.

Speaking at a news conference here, Mufti Rafi Usmani said: “Responsibility for the failure of negotiations with Ghazi and the resultant killing of hundreds of people squarely lies on the shoulders of Gen Musharraf.”

Talking to media persons in the wee hours of Tuesday, the PML president claimed that the draft prepared by the government after thorough consultations with the ulema was not changed, but given a legal shape at the presidency. He said Abdul Rashid Ghazi had been informed that it was necessary to keep him under house arrest for security reasons.

However, the Wafaqul Madaris office-bearers said all the three points agreed in the draft were changed to make them unacceptable for the Lal Masjid people. Explaining, he said it was agreed that Mr Ghazi along with his family and personal belongings would be shifted to his village, which was changed to “legal action will be taken after his house arrest in his village”.

The section dealing with the associates of Ghazi —who were to be detained for inquiry and those found innocent were to be sent home — was also totally changed. Similarly, the ulema alleged, the portion concerning the fate of Lal Masjid, Jamia Hafsa and Jamia Fareedia was also changed.

The ulema, including Maulana Salimullah, Qari Hanif Jallandhri and Maulana Abdul Malik, said Chaudhry Shujaat chose to take the draft to the presidency after its preparation by Maulana Zahid-ur-Rashdi and minister of state for information Tariq Azim Khan.

They alleged that when the official team came back, they alleged the whole draft was changed which was obviously rejected by Ghazi.

They said, “We differed with the modus operandi adopted by the Ghazi brothers but we were in agreement with their cause for reconstruction of demolished mosques and Islamisation of the society”. Chaudhry Shujaat said that it appeared from the talks that Abdul Rashid Ghazi was forced by the militants inside the mosque to bring up the question of foreigners during the final phase of the negotiations.

Shujaat said Abdul Rashid Ghazi was seeking time to consult his companions which showed that he was not acting independently. Mr Hussain expressed disappointment over the failure of dialogue held between Ulema delegation and Ghazi.

“I have never been so disappointed in my life but I am leaving this place with extreme dejection,” the PML president told media men shortly after his last telephonic conversation with Abdul Rashid Ghazi.