Staff Reporter
Lahore
The Lahore High Court on Tuesday allowed for hearing Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf’s petition to stay special court proceedings against him in the high treason case.
Justice Sayyed Mazhar Ali Akbar Naqvi overruled the objections raised by the registrar’s office and scheduled its hearing for November 28 – the same day the special court is said to announce its verdict.
Former president Pervez Musharraf had petitioned the LHC to stay the special court proceedings until he recuperates and appears before the court in person.
The three-judge special court – headed by Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth – had reserved its verdict on November 19 while rejecting the interior ministry’s request for more time to notify a new prosecution team to wrap up the case. It had also rejected a request from Musharraf’s counsel to adjourn hearings and noted that the defence could also submit its written arguments by November 26.
The court is scheduled to hand down its verdict on November 28 in the absence of Musharraf, who had flown to the UAE in May 2016 for ‘medical treatment’ and has not returned since to face the court.
During the hearing, Justice Naqvi asked whether any petition was filed in the Islamabad High Court. Musharraf’s counsel Khawaja Tariq Rahim responded that the interior ministry did file a petition in the IHC.
Justice Naqvi then stated that the Supreme Court had given directions to the special court, to which Musharraf’s counsel replied that the formation of a special court is illegal and was formed on the directives of the then prime minister, instead of getting an approval from the cabinet.
Meanwhile, the IHC on Tuesday heard petitions filed by Musharraf and the interior ministry requesting it to set aside the special court’s decision to reserve its judgement in the case.
During the proceedings, a three-member larger bench of the court comprising IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani asked Musharraf’s lawyer, Barrister Salman Safdar, to sit down, saying they would hear the interior ministry’s petition first. Justice Minallah said that Musharraf is a judicial fugitive and asked the interior ministry’s counsel to get a complete record from the law ministry regarding the interior ministry’s stance and the formation of the special court. Prosecutor Sajid Ilyas Bhatti said that after confirming the entire record, he will inform the court.
