Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf said Saturday that conspiracy had been hatched against him, urging the masses to "frustrate designs of those who are indulged in conspiracies".

"I think that conspiracy is being hatched. It must be investigated as to who are the conspirators," Musharraf told a public gathering of thousands of people in Pakpattan, a town 250 kms from Lahore, the capital city of Pakistan's eastern Punjab province.

"I am not worried about the protest. I want to tell the conspirators to stop conspiracies and let the system function," he said, while referring to violent protests by lawyers and opposition political parties.

Lawyers and political parties are staging rallies against Musharraf after he suspended the country's Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chuadhry on March 9.

The suspended chief justice, accused by Musharraf of misuse of authority and misconduct, has refused to resign under pressure and to defend himself against the charges.

The suspension has evoked strong protests and thousands of lawyers clashed with riot police in Lahore Saturday.

Opposition and lawyers say that Musharraf had suspended the chief justice as he had delivered several anti-government verdicts.

"The conspirators will face defeat. Their intentions are bad. Stop conspiracies. The nation must not back those who are conspiring against me," Musharraf said.

He said that some elements were provoking the people to bring them on roads for clash with police to make it an issue.

Musharraf said that he had no personal grudge with the suspended chief justice and that he had sent a reference to the Supreme Judicial Council of Pakistan against the chief justice to fulfill his constitutional and legal duty.

The Supreme Judicial Council is hearing the presidential reference against the chief justice and has set March 21 for the next hearing.

"The reference against the chief justice was sent to me by the prime minister and it was my responsibility to send it to the Supreme Judicial Council," he said.

"The issue must not be politicized and do not make it as a pretext for conspiracies against me," Musharraf said.

He said that he would accept any decision from the Supreme Judicial Council about the chief justice.

Source: Xinhua