Former president General (retd) Pervez Musharraf. PHOTO: INP
Islamabad Additional District and Sessions Judge (west) Pervaizul Qadir Memon issued the instruction under Section 88 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).
The court also declared the former military ruler a proclaimed offender and confiscated surety bonds of Rs200,000, which had been submitted by his guarantors – Capt (retd) Nazir Ahmed and Jan Mohammad – when Musharraf was granted bail by a sessions court in November 2013.
The court also dismissed an application submitted by Musharraf’s counsel, saying the army acted in aid of civil power to carry out the Lal Masjid operation, during which Ghazi was killed.
Akhtar Shah, counsel for Musharraf, had maintained during the previous hearings that as per Section 132 of the CrPC, no criminal case could be filed against any official of the armed forces when they are acting in aid of civil power except with the sanction of the government.
He requested the court to quash the case against his client since the federal government’s sanction had not been obtained in this instance.
The judge, however, described the application as ‘infructuous’ in its decision on Saturday. The court issued non-bailable arrest warrants for Musharraf on February 20, and initiated the process to declare the former president a proclaimed offender in the case by issuing a proclamation on May 21 this year.
When the court took up the case on Saturday, advocate Irum Shaheen, who appeared on behalf of Musharraf, requested the court to adjourn the case till next month saying Shah, the senior lawyer defending Musharraf, was abroad. She said Musharraf was abroad for treatment and would return to Pakistan and appear before the court. The judge remarked that the case had already been adjourned several times in the past and announced the decision, which was reserved on June 25.
Aabpara police had registered a murder case against Musharraf on the directions of the Islamabad High Court on September 2, 2013. The former president was arrested on October 10 and was granted bail by a sessions judge on November 4, 2013.
The former president left the country ‘for treatment’ in March this year.
The case has now been adjourned for an indefinite period.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 18th, 2016.
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