Kohat (Pakistan), June 10: President General Pervez Musharraf today said Pakistan does not need a "backward and intolerant" brand of Islam, in his first visit to an ultraconservative province where ruling pro-Taliban hardliners last week instituted Shariah, or Islamic law. Musharraf instead called for a tolerant Islamic society in Pakistan, in a speech in the North West Frontier Province, which borders Afghanistan.

"Islam is a progressive religion," Musharraf said. "Islam is a religion of tolerance and a religion of welfare which protects the rights of women and all classes."

"We have to decide, do we need the Taliban's version of Islam or a civilised Islam?" Musharraf asked. "We do not need an intolerant and backward type of Islam in Pakistan."

Musharraf spoke as the province's hardline Islamic chief minister, Akram Durrani, looked on in a ceremony to inaugurate a tunnel in Kohat, the provincial capital.

A coalition of six Islamic groups won October elections on a strong anti-American platform, and promises to usher in a strict version of Islamic laws. Since taking office they have banned music on public buses, ordered movie billboards depicting women painted over, and banned men from watching women's sporting events.

Musharraf criticised the measures Durrani's government has taken so far. "These are peripheral issues for governance. This is small thinking. This will make no difference in governance," Musharraf said.

It was the second time in less than a week that Musharraf has derided steps by the resurgent Islamic alliance. On Sunday, speaking in the eastern city of Lahore, Musharraf said Pakistan did not need a Taliban-style Islam.

Bureau Report