Benazir assassination case: Court reserves judgment over Musharraf’s assets

Both sides conclude arguments on reopening the ex-president’s 11 frozen bank accounts.

RAWALPINDI:

The trial court hearing the Benazir Bhutto assassination case is likely to announce its decision on an application filed for reopening former president Pervez Musharraf’s frozen bank accounts on October 3.

Special Judge of Anti-Terrorism Court-I Chaudhry Habibur Rehman decided on the date after both the lawyer of the applicant – former president’s wife Sehba – and the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) special public prosecutor concluded their arguments for and against the plea for reopening the accounts, which hold more than  Rs100 million.

Advocate Muhammad Ilyas Siddiqi, representing Sehba Musharraf, said the FIA did not hold an inquiry to establish whether the accounts belong to Pervez Musharraf or not before freezing the bank accounts.

Siddiqi argued that four of the 11 frozen bank accounts were jointly operated by Pervez and Sehba Musharraf; therefore, the FIA could not seal them.

The lawyer concluded his arguments with the contention that the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had already stopped the Capital Development Authority (CDA) from sealing a farmhouse owned by Sehba Musharraf in the federal capital.

The trial court directed the applicant’s lawyer to present a copy of the IHC stay order at the next hearing before the application was decided.

Meanwhile, FIA Prosecutor Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali argued that no one could ask to reopen the attached accounts on behalf of a proclaimed offender.

Only the proclaimed offender, after surrendering before the law, could allow the court access to the frozen accounts, the prosecutor said, adding that Musharraf is still a fugitive and Interpol has been requested to arrest him.

Addressing the issue of the four joint accounts, the prosecutor went on to say that there was no proof that the money in the accounts belongs to Sehba Musharraf.  “The money belonged to her husband, who is an absconder,” Zulfiqar added.

The prosecutor maintained that the trial court could not review its decision of declaring Musharraf a proclaimed offender.

Later, the prosecution’s witness, a member of the Bomb Disposal Squad (BDS), deposed before the court that former prime minister Benazir Bhutto died due to the bomb blast and not because of any bullet injury.

Muhammad Saqlain, a member of the bomb disposal squad, told the court that the velocity of the bomb blast on the evening of Benazir’s death was as high as 8,000 kilometres per hour, and the impact led to her death, not a gunshot wound.

The court has set the next hearing for October 6, when defence lawyers will cross-examine three other prosecution witnesses.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 30^th, 2012.