The introduction of a bill to set up a Hasba (accountability) Department in North West Frontier Province (NWFP) comes a day after the provincial parliament passed a bill to implement Sharia, or Islamic law, in the conservative region.

Provincial officials say the department, which will station officials in each district of the province, will be responsible for promoting religious observance.

Critics say it is modeled on the Department for Prevention of Vice and Promotion of Virtue, the Afghan religious police under the Taliban regime toppled by US-led forces in late 2001.

North West Frontier came under the control of a six-party Islamic alliance after October elections.

Since taking power, the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), which includes two openly pro-Taliban parties, has taken steps reminiscent of the Taliban's religious fundamentalism.

On Saturday, it ordered civil servants to pray five times a day and urged businesses to close at prayer times.

This followed curbs on the sale of music and videos, destruction of posters featuring women and advertising Western products, and the imposition of a complete ban on alcohol.

MMA has also banned music on public transport, medical examinations of women by male doctors, males coaching women athletes and male journalists covering women's sports.

The NWFP is the first province in Islamic Pakistan in recent years to announce it will impose Sharia, but it remains unclear how extreme the system will prove.

Under Sharia, judgments are reached with reference to Islamic teachings, and punishments can be severe depending on interpretation. They can include amputations of hands for theft and stoning to death for adultery.

In announcing the decision, provincial officials said Sharia must be respected by the police and the judiciary. Under Pakistan's federal system justice is dispensed centrally.

Speaking to Reuters on Monday, provincial Law Minister Zafar Azam declined to clarify what the move might entail, but an assembly official said a commission would examine laws to bring them in line with Sharia, including its ban on interest on loans.

Observers say the MMA's latest moves could widen its differences with Musharraf's government.