Musharraf treason case: Special court to announce verdict on Nov 28

Special court has reserved its verdict after six years

ISLAMABAD: The special court hearing a high treason case against former military ruler General (retd) Pervez Musharraf will announce its verdict on November 28.

After a passage of six years, the three-judge special court led by Justice Waqar Ahmed Seth reserved its verdict on Tuesday.

The case against the military dictator was filed by the Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz (PML-N) government in late 2013 for subverting the Constitution when he imposed a state of emergency on November 3, 2007.

Musharraf seized power in 1999 after a coup against then-prime minister Nawaz Sharif who had tried to remove him as army chief.

‘Special court can announce verdict in Musharraf treason case’

He was forced out nine years later when threatened with impeachment and lived in self-imposed exile till his return to Pakistan in March 2013.

Musharraf became Pakistan's first army chief to be charged with treason when he was indicted on March 31, 2014.

He pleaded not guilty to five charges and dismissed them as being politically motivated.

The trial, however, could not be concluded over the past six years due to several reasons.

First, the special court initially directed the federal government to include three more individuals and initiate a treason case against them.

Consequently, the proceedings remained suspended for a couple of years until the Supreme Court set aside the special court’s order and directed it to proceed against Musharraf only.

In March 2016, the former army chief left Pakistan to seek medical treatment in Dubai.

In October this year, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government de-notified the prosecution team which was hired in December 2013 by the PML-N government.

Renowned lawyer Akram Sheikh was heading the prosecution team. He resigned soon after the PTI’s victory in the 2018 general elections and the remaining team members were sacked this year.