Lahore, Dec 28 : Leaders of the parties included in the Pak-Afghan Defence Council took out a procession here on Friday to demand release of their arrested leaders and to criticize government's policies.

The procession was taken out after Juma prayers from outside the shrine of Data Gunj Bakhsh and it culminated at Azadi Chowk. A large number of police accompanied the procession, but the processionists dispersed peacefully after listening to the speeches by their leaders.

Speakers, including Mian Maqsood Ahmad, Maulana Amjad Khan, Qazi Hussain Ahmad's son Luqman Qazi, Saifuddin Saif and Bashir Nizami, demanded release of the leaders, including JI ameer Qazi Hussain Ahmad, Maulana Abdul Haq Baloch, Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Maulana Azam Tariq.

They also accused the government of towing the American line with regard to Afghanistan and India. Mian Maqsood said there was no need to attack Pakistan as the enemy had already achieved its target of creating differences between the government and the people.

He said the wrong policies of the government had dishonoured the country and it must, therefore, quit. The JI's Lahore ameer criticized Ms Benazir Bhutto for what he alleged supporting America.

Meanwhile, ameer, Jamaat-e-Islami, Sindh Asadullah Bhutto (advocate) while addressing a protest rally at Bacha Khan Chowk on Friday against the arrest of party ameer Qazi Hussain Ahmad and other leaders of the PADC said that the Indian government had taken all the opposition parties into confidence and created a war hysteria but President Gen Pervez Musharaf had adopted a policy of confrontation with the political parties and was only banking on the United States.



He said that a gulf had been created between the people and the government due to the pro-American and anti-Afghan polices adopted by Gen Pervez Musharaf. He warned that if this gulf was not bridged, Pakistan would not be able to challenge the Indian aggression.

Asadullah Bhutto said that we must learn a lesson from the 1965 and 1971 wars when the government of the day did not enjoy the support of the people.

He said that instead of sitting in the Aiwan-i-Saddar, Gen Pervez Musharaf should handover power to an interim government and go to the front line where his services were needed more. He reminded President Gen Pervez Musharaf that the nation was against him due to his pro-US and anti-Afghan policies.

He said that through the rulers, the US wanted to convert Pakistan into a secular state. He warned that this conspiracy would be "resisted by every child of Pakistan".

He said that the blood of Muslims in Afghanistan would not have been shed in vain. He said that the "dollar government of Hamid Karzai" would come to an end in 2002.

The others who addressed the rally included NLF President Rana Mehmood Ali Khan, Ameer Jamaat-e-Islami (Hyderabad) Shaikh Shaukat Ali, and Maqbool Shaikh among others.

In Peshawar also, a large protest ally was taken out from Mohabat Khan Mosque to condemn the detention of JI ameer Qazi Hussain Ahmad, and other PADC leaders. Prof. Ibrahim, Hakeem Abdul Waheed and Maulana Ashraf Qureshi led the protesters.

The rally's participants, shouting anti-US slogans, asked the government to release Qazi Hussain Ahmad and other PADC leaders immediately. Addressing the protest rally at Qisa Khwani Bazaar the JI provincial ameer Professor Mohammad Ibrahim said the country was at a crossroads and had been isolated in the international community "due to the wrong policies of the government." He demanded of the US forces to vacate military bases in Pakistan and withdraw its ground forces from Afghanistan.

Professor Ibrahim denounced the government policies, saying that President Gen Musharaf had bowed before the US pressure. He said that after the collapse of Taliban government, the country's western borders had become insecure.

He said the US considered Qazi Hussain Ahmad a main hurdle in implementation of its designs which was why the government put him behind the bars. He was not even released to celebrate Eid with his family.

He asked the government to release Qazi and withdraw all cases against him, including the sedition charges

Like other parts of the country, twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad also witnessed a massive protest demo led by the JI acting Rawalpindi city. The demonstration started from Moti Mosque, Liaquat Road. A large number of JI activists participated in the rally which marched towards Fawara Chowk. They chanted anti-government slogans and held banners and placards.



The JI Ameer, Rawalpindi district, Mohammad Abbas Butt, JI Naib ameer, Rawalpindi, Maulana Abdul Jalil, Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan leader Farooq Amin and President, Shabab Milli Rawalpindi, Haji Tahir Khan, also participated in the demonstration.

Addressing the protesters JI acting ameer Rawalpindi city Syed Uzair Hamid lamented the government's foreign policy which enabled India to become aggressive towards Pakistan.

He said the United States was the biggest terrorist in the world, and demanded of the government to expel the Americans out of the country.

He further criticized the double standards adopted by the US, and said: "If two US buildings are destroyed, it is terrorism, but, if tens of thousands of people are killed in Afghanistan, Kashmir and Palestine, it is not terrorism."

JI ameer Rawalpindi district, Abbas Butt, said India had gathered its forces along the Line of Control, and was ready to launch an attack on Pakistan.

He asked the government to remain active and take political leaders, masses, lawyers, students and common men into confidence for a joint strategy to counter any Indian aggression.

The naib ameer JI Rawalpindi district, Maulana Abdul Jalil, said the country was passing through the worst economic and political crisis. The JI had always rendered sacrifices for the country and it would not hesitate to do so in future also, he added.

He asked the government to release the leaders of religious parties and create an atmosphere that would enable all patriotic elements to form a joint strategy for the defence of the country.

The president of Shabab Milli Rawalpindi, Haji Tahir Khan, in his speech, said the country was facing severe threats due to the government's policies.

India is threatening Pakistan of dire consequences, but, the government was not taking steps to counter these threats. He demanded of the government to release JI ameer Qazi Hussain Ahmad if it wanted peace in the country and public support.

The Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan leader, Farooq Amin, said the government should release all detained leaders of the JI and Pakistan-Afghanistan Defence Council.

Speaking on the occasion, the former JI MPA, Chaudhry Tanveer held President Pervez Musharaf responsible for the killings of innocent people in Afghanistan. He warned the government to release Qazi Hussain Ahmed and Maulana Fazlur Rehman, otherwise, the situation in the country would deteriorate.