RAWALPINDI: President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto today [March 9] underlined the imperative need for framing a permanent Constitution... . `If we can`t frame the Constitution even after 25 years, Pakistan`s existence will be in jeopardy`, he told a deputation of political science students from the Punjab University... .

The president said that the draft before the Constituent Assembly was federal and democratic in character. It guaranteed fundamental rights and independence of judiciary. There were also Islamic provisions in the draft. He asked the students not to worry about the criticism against the draft. After all, the role of Opposition was to offer criticism. News agencies [Meanwhile, as reported by our Staff Reporter from Karachi,] about 4,000 teachers of 115 Government lower and secondary schools in Karachi region stayed away from their classes in protest against the non-acceptance of their demands. The strike was conducted in a disciplined manner... . Students in most of the schools were attending their respective classes as usual except that instead of regular teachers in the class there were `Pupil-teachers` or senior students manning the classrooms.