Day of surprises at special court

ISLAMABAD: Soon after 8:00am, security officials fanned out far and wide. Every motorist and every pedestrian entering the red zone was thoroughly checked. There were more law enforcers in number than ever before. And something was noticeably different about this morning.

Considering the times that Pervez Musharraf had skipped the court hearing, it was anyone’s guess whether the ex-military ruler would finally make an appearance before the court on Monday.

The media somewhat pre-empted his appearance, some dispersing to take a better shot of the former dictator’s cavalcade – or him.

At 9:30am, Musharraf’s ‘never-ending’ security entourage zoomed into court.

The courtroom teemed with people, most of them security officials. And as soon as the former president – dressed in a beige shalwar-kameez with a dark blazer – set foot into the courtroom, there was deafening silence.



Lawyers fidgeted, journalists became restless with excitement. They wanted to break the news that the general had finally arrived, but were not allowed to exit once the former dictator was seated.

Security officials did not allow anyone to sit near Musharraf in the courtroom. “You cannot sit here,” one security official in plainclothes snapped at me, even though he knew I was a reporter.  I traversed around the seats and finally sat to hear his indictment.

Farogh Naseem, Musharraf’s newly appointed lawyer who is also an MQM senator, entered the courtroom, briefcase in hand, and submitted his lawyer’s licence to represent the former president in the treason case. This came as the second surprise of the day.

“Now I’m representing Musharraf and there will be no rowdy behaviour in the courtroom anymore,” Naseem stated. Justice Faisal Arab, who heads the bench, appreciated Naseem’s respect for the courtroom, mentioning the behaviour of Musharraf’s previous defence counsels.

State prosecutor Akram Sheikh also appreciated Naseem for bringing discipline back to the court. “You have a charming personality and are very professional,” Sheikh said to him. And so the indictment began. There was not a speck of nervousness on Musharraf’s face, in his stride or demeanour. It seemed as if he was giving a lecture, not facing trial. And with the same eloquence, he began his 24-minute address after the charges were formally read to him.

“This is my second court appearance. I came against the advice of my doctors,” he began.

Holding the notes of his speech in his right hand and a page of his charge sheet in other hand, he replied to the charges, “How can I be declared a traitor? I fought two wars and was awarded for gallantry during the 1965 war,” Musharraf stated.

Traitors are those who create hindrances in the country’s socio-economic development and those who loot the national exchequer. Addressing Justice Tahira, a special bench member, he said, “Ma’am, you are from Quetta and you can better understand how I launched record-level development work in Balochistan.”

But after his articulate and confident address, Musharraf returned to his seat, alone, with no one present to acknowledge him – as his previous defence team had boycotted the legal proceedings.

The general couldn’t resist. He asked a female lawyer – while the court was still in session – how his address was. “It was wonderful, sir,” she replied, probably giving some reinforcement to the former president. It was surprising to see the dauntless general needing re-assurance.

The court retired at 11am, but soon after, in a rare show of amity, the prosecutor had a brief chat with Musharraf and he assured the former president that despite the allegations made by his previous legal team, he was not biased. “Rashid Quraishi was my classmate, didn’t he tell you?” he asked.

“Oh, that’s why you’re in the opposition?” quipped Musharraf. “No, no, I’m not against you, sir,” the prosecutor replied.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 1^st, 2014.