ISLAMABAD Jan 2: The Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal on Sunday demanded that Gen Pervez Musharraf should quit the offices of president and the chief of army staff. Otherwise, it warned, he would face "a strong and joint opposition movement".

A meeting of the MMA's supreme council was held here on Sunday under the chairmanship of Qazi Hussain Ahmed. It was attended by Maulana Fazlur Rahman, Senator Prof Sajid Mir, Allama Sajid Ali Naqvi, Liaquat Baloch, Qari Gul Rahman, Hafiz Hussain Ahmed and Pir Ijaz Hashmi.

The alliance announced to hold protest days on January 7, 24 and 28 and observe Feb 5 as Kashmir solidarity day when a human chain would be formed "right from Karachi to Khyber".

The MMA decided to try to bridge differences with other opposition parties in the struggle for supremacy of the constitution and to share a political understanding that no party in future would invite the army to resolve political crisis.

Briefing journalists after the meeting, Maulana Fazl, the alliance's secretary-general, said that the meeting wanted Gen Musharraf to quit both the offices because it was 'in his own interest' and endorsed an earlier decision to continue efforts to secure support of the entire opposition.

He said that the alliance had not decided to abandon the option of negotiations with the government. He said that the MMA reiterated its resolve to launch a movement to force Gen Musharraf to quit the offices of the president and the COAS, and to defend what he termed the country's ideological frontiers against moves to change the blasphemy and Hudood laws, delete the religion column in the machine-readable passports and its policies about education and seminaries.

The alliance, he said, had also expressed its determination to struggle for the restoration of parliament's sovereignty and constitution's supremacy and against bowing to US dictates in national policies.

Qazi Hussain alleged that the military leadership had betrayed the alliance on the question of uniform. He said that there was a 'complete unity' in the ranks of the alliance on the question of a movement which, he added, would be launched in cooperation with other opposition parties.

He said that efforts would be made to end differences with other opposition parties and to reach an understanding on not 'inviting' the army in the event of a political crisis.

The MMA, apparently because of a dismal response to its Jan 1 'black day', decided to 'reorganize and strengthen' its district-level organizations and try to bring back to the alliance Maulana Samiul Haq, the leader of his own faction in the JUI.

It directed its district chapters to strengthen themselves by holding regular meetings and constituted a four-member committee to contact Maulana Samiul Haq to persuade him to join the alliance in its struggle.

The meeting decided that Qazi Hussain and Maulana Fazl would meet Maulana Sami if he showed 'flexibility'. Maulana Shah Abdul Aziz, Qari Gul Rahman MNAs, Pir Abdul Rahim Naqshbandi and Pir Abdul Shakoor Naqshbandi are members of the committee which would soon meet the Maulana.