Benazir assassination case: In a first, ex-military ruler charged with murder

ATC indicts Musharraf for murder, criminal conspiracy for murder and facilitation for murder.

RAWALPINDI:

For decades Pakistan’s military rulers have revelled in their untouchable reputation. But on Tuesday the unthinkable happened against a veritable member of the untouchables: ex-military strongman Pervez Musharraf was charged with the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

The beginning of the downslide came soon after Musharraf ended his four years of self-imposed exile in Dubai and London in March this year. Once back home, to his dismay he found himself entangled in a slew of court challenges. Musharraf was also barred from contesting the May 11 general elections.

On Tuesday, Rawalpindi’s Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) indicted him on three charges: criminally conspiring, abetting and murdering Benazir who was assassinated in a gun-and-bomb attack outside Liaquat Bagh on December 27, 2007. At that time, the government had blamed the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.

It is the first time an ex-army chief has been charged with a crime, exploding a myth that the military is immune from prosecution.

Musharraf’s brief appearance before ATC Special Judge Chaudhry Habibur Rahman was accompanied by massive security. He was protected by scores of officers and roads leading to the court were shut down.

In the courtroom, an eight-page charge sheet was read out. Musharraf signed the charge sheet but denied all the charges.

Earlier Musharraf’s attorney, Ilyas Siddiqui, requested the court to exempt his client from personally appearing before the judge as there were serious threats to his life.

Giving counter argument, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA)’s special prosecutor Chaudhry Azhar Ali said that Musharraf was a murder accused and could be only granted exemption on medical grounds. However, Ali’s argument couldn’t impress the judge who granted the exemption in the end.

Another accused in the case, former superintendent of police Khurram Shehzad, requested for a speedy trial and suggested hearings be held on coming Monday and Tuesday. The FIA prosecutor, however, said it was not possible for him.

The judge asked the prosecution to produce its witnesses on the next hearing. The court will again take up the case on August 27.

Speaking to The Express Tribune outside the court, the FIA special prosecutor said Musharraf was “charged with murder, criminal conspiracy for murder and facilitation for murder” because he did not provide Benazir the VVIP security she deserved. “He will be tried for 11 charges,” Chaudhry Azhar Ali added.

Musharraf’s spokesperson Raza Bokhari dismissed the indictment as ‘false, fabricated and fictitious’ and “an undignified attempt to smear the honour and integrity of the former president”.

His defence lawyer Syeda Afshan Adil added that they would contest the charges. “We are not afraid of the proceedings. We will follow legal procedures in the court,” she added.

In all, seven accused have been charged in the Benazir assassination case. They are Musharraf, Sher Zaman, Rashid Ahmad, Qari Hasnain Gul, Rafaqat Hussain, former DIG Saud Aziz and former SP Khurram Shehzad. The eight accused, Aitezaz Shah, is a minor and hence cannot be indicted. He will be tried in a juvenile court.

Similarly, American journalist Mark Siegel, who is the key witness among all 141 witnesses, has repeatedly refused to travel to Pakistan to record his statement. Interestingly, the FIA’s charge sheet against Musharraf is based on a statement of Seigel who claims that Benazir had told him that if anything happened to her Musharraf would be responsible.

Analysts say while murder will be difficult to prove, the indictment may embolden efforts to try Musharraf for treason for violating the constitution by sacking judges and imposing emergency rule in 2007. Treason can carry the death penalty.

“There is a long way to go and it will be very, very difficult to prove that he engineered the murder conspiracy or that he was the mastermind,” political analyst Imtiaz Gul told AFP. “All we have seen is a politically motivated indictment, which may be of no real significance in the long run.”

Musharraf, who is facing a barrage of court cases, has enjoyed the comparative luxury of house arrest at his villa on the edge of Islamabad since April after returning from self-imposed exile. He has been formally granted bail in two of three cases against him.

Analyst Hasan Askari said that though the indictment would stoke tensions between the military and civilian institutions of the judiciary and government, the army would play a quiet game.

“They will quietly monitor the situation as to how this case proceeds and to what extent it reflects negatively on the military,” he told AFP. “They are not on the back foot but... they will be concerned about implications of this case for the military.”

Published in The Express Tribune, August 21^st, 2013.