FAISALABAD, April 10: Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy chief Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan has asked President Pervez Musharraf to quit the post of chief of the army staff in the interest of country’s sovereignty and the democratic system.

Speaking to participants of a rally brought out here on Thursday to condemn the US aggression against Iraq, the ARD chairman blamed the military leadership responsible for killing of innocent Muslims in Afghanistan.

The logistic and other support provided by the Musharraf regime to US forces during attack on Afghanistan paved the way for the coalition forces to use bases of neighbouring Muslim countries for attacking Iraq.

He said that America and Britain had tried to manoeuvre the UN support for attacking Iraq, levelling the allegations on the Saddam government of having weapons of mass destructions. However, when the UN Inspectors in their report refuted the claims of two big powers, the coalition forces invaded Iraq without getting the mandate from UN Security Council, he added.

Regretting the indifferent attitude of heads of most of Muslim countries over Iraq issue, he claimed that this criminal silence provided a walkover to the coalition forces.

The ARD chief alleged that the present government had failed miserably in providing any relief to the poor people. Political victimization, harassment and threats of government agencies to political leaders had become an order of the day, he said.

Criticizing the LFO, he reiterated that no body could amend the constitution on his own as it was parliament which had the powers to change its clauses after two-thirds majority.

Nawabzada made it clear that the government would not be allowed to transact its business under the LFO-amended Constitution and component parties of the ARD would resist strongly over this move of the rulers.

PML-N President Makhdoom Jawed Hashmi said that President Pervez Musharraf was playing the role of an army general of the US military just to prolong his rule. The US would not attack on Pakistan because it had already been converted into its another state, he said

The time, he said, had come to oust the present rulers from the corridors of power as they were involved in killing of thousands of Afghan and Iraqi people.

Central PML-N and PPP leaders Zafar Iqbal Jhagra, Qasim Zia, Tahmeena Doultana, Saifullah Saif, Khawaja Saad Rafique, Rana Aftab Ahmed Khan, Safdar Rehman, Rana Zahid Tauseef, Raja Riaz

Ahmed, Sheikh Ijaz Ahmed, Mehmoodul Hassan Dar, Khawaja Muhammad Islam, Imran Murtaza Khan also addressed the gathering and criticized the internal and foreign policies of the government.

Earlier, the ARD rally started from the Railway Station Intersection and reached Kutchery Chowk after marching through various city roads. Hundreds of activists and workers of PPP and PML-N carrying flags of their respective parties and banners inscribed with anti-US slogans shouted slogans against the government.

None of the central leaders of ARD’s component parties led the rally as announced by the local ARD leaders.