Pervez Musharraf. Photo: file
The federal government has challenged the decision of the Sindh High Court (SHC) to remove former president Pervez Musharraf’s name from the Exit Control List (ECL) in the Supreme Court.
The chief justice of Pakistan has formed a three-member bench – headed by Justice Saqib Nisar and including Justice Asif Saeed Khosa and Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan – that will take up the appeal on Monday.
In its petition, the government has requested to suspend the SHC’s decision and asked the Supreme Court to stop the former military ruler from travelling abroad.
The federation held that Musharraf’s name was added to the ECL pursuant to the order of the Supreme Court and it is wrong to claim that there was no reason to restrict him from travelling abroad, as the SHC ruled, the government said.
Musharraf — who is involved in serious offences — has all the reasons not to come back to Pakistan once he leaves the country and his trial, which is at an advanced stage, would simply be brought to a standstill, it emphasised in the appeal.
Although the right to travel abroad is a fundamental right, the federal government can put reasonable restrictions for public interest, it submitted.
Musharraf stated that his primary ground for going abroad was to attend to his ailing mother. The federal government offered to fly in the respondent’s mother from UAE. But since the former military ruler was abusing the process of the court to get out of Pakistan and to avoid his trial, he did not accept the offer, the petition read.
On Thursday, the SHC had ordered the removal of Musharraf’s name from the ECL but had suspended this order for around two weeks, giving the federal government time to appeal against the decision before the Supreme Court. Following the high court’s order, Musharraf filed a petition in the SHC requesting permission to leave the country at the earliest to visit his mother.
The federal government’s petition stated, “It is further prayed that during the pendency of the instant petition, the impugned judgment may kindly be suspended and the name of the respondent may kindly continue to remain on the ECL and he may be restrained from going abroad without the permission of this honorable court.”
The former president is involved in 12 cases and faces treason charges for subverting and circumventing the constitution by imposing emergency on November 3, 2007. The federal government had placed his name on the ECL, stating that he might try to abscond.
Musharraf’s petition to modify ECL decision
Separately, in Karachi, an SHC division bench requested its Chief Justice Maqbool Baqar on Saturday to constitute a special bench for hearing Musharraf’s application seeking modification of the bench’s order passed in the ECL case.
Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar – who headed the bench that had, on Thursday, annulled the travel ban on the retired general – also directed the office to inform the members of the newly constituted bench at the earliest, so that they could take up the plea on June 16.
Justice Mazhar and his companion Justice Shahnawaz Tariq are currently on vacation, therefore, they have sought the constitution of new bench to decide the matter.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 15th, 2014.
COMMENTS (7)
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Musarraf case is showing simple harmonic motion between the two poles . On one side there is judiciary while on the other is Govt . The third pole is Army . No one can ignore the force of the third pole .
@Naeem Khan Manhattan,Ks: He is facing law of the land i.e courts since he came back to Pakistan. Why you are not respecting courts decision. What is your problem?
@Bagga: My problem is that the elite of Pakistan always get away with the crimes they have committed, they should not be above the laws of the land and that is why Pakistan is considered lawless country around the world. It is simple, either the laws of land and the constitution apply to every one or no one, so you enlighten me and the rest of the readers here why any one should get away by not obeying the laws of the country. Mr.Musharraf has violated the constitution and the laws of the land and he should face the laws and clear himself like any person with an iota of dignity and self respect, obliviously he lacks both
This corrupt government is following their personal vendetta They failed miserably in every department to deliver any progress for the common people. They came to power as a result of rigged election. There is no democracy but sheriff family dictatorship supported by their cronies
@Naeem Khan Manhattan,Ks:
What is your problem if the courts will allow him to travel.
We in India had only a brief whiff of emergency and that gave us a lesson for life. Looking at majority comments, I wonder how people in Pakistan are so fond of Generals and army rule? What is there that endears them so much to guns and boots? Look at the list of heroes they adore from beginning of history,all generals and raiders like Timur Lang and so on. Any answers please.
A precedence has been established already when ambassador Haqqani promised to the Supreme Court that he will come back and appear before the court as required but he never did and he never intended to do so, he hoodwinked the Supreme court and the court had fallen for it. It is prudent for Mr. Musharraf to bring his mother to Pakistan by air ambulance on his own expense since he is millionaire and could easily afford it. It is so transparent that he is using his mother as an excuse to run away from the country instead of facing the cases like any dignified man would. Strange as it may sound that during his dictatorial rule, not a single world class hospital was built in Pakistan so these elite could have medical treatment done in Pakistan instead of running to other countries. It is so ironical that Mr. Musharraf has trashed the higher judiciary and even incarcerated the Chief Justice of Pakistan and now he is going around the courts to let him off the hook so he could leave for good and wait till another military dictatorship shows up. The current government did the right decision to appeal and hopefully the Supreme Court of Pakistan will set aside the Sindh court's judgment.