LAHORE, Aug 19: The Alliance for Restoration of Democracy (ARD), if voted into power, will not act against Gen Pervez Musharraf for subverting the constitution, provided he hands over power to a caretaker government of national complexion to hold free and fair elections, coalition chief Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan declared here on Monday after a meeting of the alliance components.
“We are not vindictive. But he (Gen Musharraf) should quit without delay, and hand over power to an interim government”, the octogenarian leaders said at a briefing at the residence of Istiqlal Party chief Manzoor Gilani.
Rejecting constitutional amendments package (already announced) as well as the ‘abridged’ one (expected to be enforced any time through a presidential order), the Nawabzada said the ARD parties would try their best to block their approval by the future parliament.
No ARD party, after being elected, would ratify any constitutional amendment as it was beyond the competence of a military general to alter the basic law, he pledged.
The alliance of over a dozen parties, including the PPP and PML(N), also refused to accept Gen Musharraf as an elected president and declared that if the ARD came to power it would hold fresh elections for the office of the president in accordance with the provisions in the constitution.
The ARD chief, who has quitted electoral politics in favour of his sons and grandsons, strongly opposed the Muslim League (F) president Pir Pagara’s proposal that general elections should be postponed for a period of six months.
“We don’t recognize as legitimate the three-year term the general says was mandated by the Supreme Court. The 140 million people of Pakistan should not be punished with an extra- constitutional rule”.
Despite the announcement of the election schedule, the Nawabzada said the ARD would remain intact. He said a committee had been constituted under his chairmanship for seats adjustment among the alliance components. Doors for adjustments were also open with other parties and alliances striving for the restoration of a democratic rule, he said. (PPP sources say that the time for adjustments was over as the party had almost finalized its candidates for all constituencies).
He said that the alliance candidates would not indulge in character-assassination of each other during the election campaign even in those constituencies where adjustments were not possible.
About the possibility of returning home of Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif to contest the elections, the leader from Khangarh said, they had the right to lead their respective parties in the polls.
He pointed out that Mian Nawaz Sharif, Mian Shahbaz Sharif and Begum Kulsoom Nawaz would be filing their nomination papers; Ms Bhutto had also declared that she would return to contest the election.
He told a questioner that the ARD would not accept the results of the elections, if rigged. He alleged that the government machinery was already involved in pre-poll rigging to get the desired results.
He criticized the government for threatening to expel the European Union election observers, saying that they represented their governments and could not be treated as NGOs.