High drama: A General Retreat
The former president evades arrest as IHC cancels his bail application.
"As an understanding, it was decided that Musharraf would not be arrested until Friday so that his counsel could file a bail application in the Supreme Court,” said a police official. DESIGN: FAIZAN DAWOOD
ISLAMABAD:
Islamabad High Court judge Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui on Thursday cancelled the bail application of General (retd) Pervez Musharraf in the judges’ detention case and ordered his arrest, prompting the former president to immediately walk out of the packed courtroom. No one tried to stop him.
Had the order been implemented, it would have been the first time in Pakistan’s history that a former chief of army staff and former president would have been arrested on court premises. But it just did not happen.
The former military strongman, guarded by his small army of bodyguards, exited the courtroom, was ushered into his bulletproof SUV and was driven to his posh Chak Shahzad farmhouse, while Islamabad police present at the IHC premises stood by and watched him leave.
Moments earlier, the charge of terrorism was levelled against him.
“Stopping judiciary and judges from functioning is a form of terrorism and it should be dealt with under the 7 Anti-Terrorism Act (7ATA),” stated Justice Siddiqui while rejecting Musharraf’s bail plea.
The former president, who was accused of subverting the country’s Constitution and detaining judges of the superior judiciary, including Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, was booked by the Secretariat police on August 11, 2009 on the complaint of Supreme Court lawyer Chaudhry Aslam Ghumman. The same IHC bench had granted him pre-arrest bail on April 2, which expired yesterday.
“The police were in a fix over his arrest. As an understanding, it was decided that Musharraf would not be arrested until Friday so that his counsel could file a bail application in the Supreme Court,” said a police official.
Senior Superintendent of Police (Operations) Yaseen Farooq, accompanied by the station house officer of Shehzad Town, met Musharraf at his Chak Shahzad residence on Thursday evening but did not arrest him. The police gave no official word on why he was not arrested. His residence remained heavily guarded by police and Rangers personnel.
The police also considered putting Musharraf under house arrest but this required presenting him before a judicial magistrate and asking for him to be sent on judicial remand. “The police were reluctant to handcuff the former president,” said the police official.
After the magistrate’s judicial remand orders, the chief commissioner can then order to place Musharraf under house arrest. However, till the filing of this report, Musharraf was neither arrested nor presented before the magistrate. “The police decided to keep that option for Friday if the Supreme Court denies Musharraf bail,” the officer added.
Irked by the police’s inaction, the IHC has also summoned the inspector-general of Punjab police on Friday to explain as to why the court’s orders were not obeyed and how the ex-president Musharraf was allowed out of the premises.
In his detailed order, Justice Siddiqui observed that Musharraf escaped from the court with the help of his armed bodyguards and Islamabad police officials at the scene did not arrest him.
The court directed the IGP to submit a report about all officials who allowed him to escape. “Apparently, this act of the accused [Musharraf] and his security guards is yet another offence therefore, the IGP is directed to explain about the steps taken to arrest the accused,” the court observed.
Justice Siddiqui said that the local police did not include the terrorism charges in the FIR which was registered under section 344 of the Pakistan Penal Code.
Subsequently, the IG Islamabad suspended the Station House Officer (SHO) Secretariat and the Investigation Officer in the judges’ detention case. The Deputy Inspector General Operations Sultan Azam Temuri has also been tasked to conduct an inquiry into Musharraf’s unobstructed departure from the court.
Musharraf counsel, Qammar Afzal maintained that his client was not directly involved in detaining the judges. He claimed that the FIR was based on mala fide intentions.
On the other hand, petitioner Ghumman maintained he had no personal grudge against Musharraf. “His act of detaining the judges was illegal and unconstitutional,” he said.
Meanwhile, investigation officer Qaiser Gilani informed the court that Musharraf did not cooperate in the investigation and he did not record his statement, despite telling the police over the phone that he would provide material.
Deputy Attorney General Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri also opposed Musharraf’s bail plea and told the IHC that, despite its order, Musharraf did not appear before the police investigators.
In his six-page judgement, Justice Siddiqui said that under the FIR contents, the former president is also a proclaimed offender and as such he could not claim the normal rights of an accused under the stature.
Now all eyes, including Musharraf’s, will be on the Supreme Court.
(Read: Hard times for Musharraf)
Published in The Express Tribune, April 19th, 2013.
A man who once ruled Pakistan for close to a decade only narrowly avoided being arrested on Thursday.
Islamabad High Court judge Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui on Thursday cancelled the bail application of General (retd) Pervez Musharraf in the judges’ detention case and ordered his arrest, prompting the former president to immediately walk out of the packed courtroom. No one tried to stop him.
Had the order been implemented, it would have been the first time in Pakistan’s history that a former chief of army staff and former president would have been arrested on court premises. But it just did not happen.
The former military strongman, guarded by his small army of bodyguards, exited the courtroom, was ushered into his bulletproof SUV and was driven to his posh Chak Shahzad farmhouse, while Islamabad police present at the IHC premises stood by and watched him leave.
Moments earlier, the charge of terrorism was levelled against him.
“Stopping judiciary and judges from functioning is a form of terrorism and it should be dealt with under the 7 Anti-Terrorism Act (7ATA),” stated Justice Siddiqui while rejecting Musharraf’s bail plea.
The former president, who was accused of subverting the country’s Constitution and detaining judges of the superior judiciary, including Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, was booked by the Secretariat police on August 11, 2009 on the complaint of Supreme Court lawyer Chaudhry Aslam Ghumman. The same IHC bench had granted him pre-arrest bail on April 2, which expired yesterday.
“The police were in a fix over his arrest. As an understanding, it was decided that Musharraf would not be arrested until Friday so that his counsel could file a bail application in the Supreme Court,” said a police official.
Senior Superintendent of Police (Operations) Yaseen Farooq, accompanied by the station house officer of Shehzad Town, met Musharraf at his Chak Shahzad residence on Thursday evening but did not arrest him. The police gave no official word on why he was not arrested. His residence remained heavily guarded by police and Rangers personnel.
The police also considered putting Musharraf under house arrest but this required presenting him before a judicial magistrate and asking for him to be sent on judicial remand. “The police were reluctant to handcuff the former president,” said the police official.
After the magistrate’s judicial remand orders, the chief commissioner can then order to place Musharraf under house arrest. However, till the filing of this report, Musharraf was neither arrested nor presented before the magistrate. “The police decided to keep that option for Friday if the Supreme Court denies Musharraf bail,” the officer added.
Irked by the police’s inaction, the IHC has also summoned the inspector-general of Punjab police on Friday to explain as to why the court’s orders were not obeyed and how the ex-president Musharraf was allowed out of the premises.
In his detailed order, Justice Siddiqui observed that Musharraf escaped from the court with the help of his armed bodyguards and Islamabad police officials at the scene did not arrest him.
The court directed the IGP to submit a report about all officials who allowed him to escape. “Apparently, this act of the accused [Musharraf] and his security guards is yet another offence therefore, the IGP is directed to explain about the steps taken to arrest the accused,” the court observed.
Justice Siddiqui said that the local police did not include the terrorism charges in the FIR which was registered under section 344 of the Pakistan Penal Code.
Subsequently, the IG Islamabad suspended the Station House Officer (SHO) Secretariat and the Investigation Officer in the judges’ detention case. The Deputy Inspector General Operations Sultan Azam Temuri has also been tasked to conduct an inquiry into Musharraf’s unobstructed departure from the court.
Musharraf counsel, Qammar Afzal maintained that his client was not directly involved in detaining the judges. He claimed that the FIR was based on mala fide intentions.
On the other hand, petitioner Ghumman maintained he had no personal grudge against Musharraf. “His act of detaining the judges was illegal and unconstitutional,” he said.
Meanwhile, investigation officer Qaiser Gilani informed the court that Musharraf did not cooperate in the investigation and he did not record his statement, despite telling the police over the phone that he would provide material.
Deputy Attorney General Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri also opposed Musharraf’s bail plea and told the IHC that, despite its order, Musharraf did not appear before the police investigators.
In his six-page judgement, Justice Siddiqui said that under the FIR contents, the former president is also a proclaimed offender and as such he could not claim the normal rights of an accused under the stature.
Now all eyes, including Musharraf’s, will be on the Supreme Court.
(Read: Hard times for Musharraf)
Published in The Express Tribune, April 19th, 2013.