ISLAMABAD: The special court set up by the government to try the former army chief and president General (retd) Pervez Musharraf on charges of treason for imposing emergency in 2007 adjourned the hearing till Friday (tomorrow), Geo News reported Thursday.
Pervez Musharraf did not yet appear before the special court today as well due to his health condition.
The certificate pertaining to the inability of Pervez Musharraf to appear before the court was produced by his lawyer on the commencement of the proceedings today.
Prosecutor Akram Sheikh argued that the court summoned Musharraf six times but the accused did not appear before the bench which can be considered contempt of the court. He further contended that courts do not wait for the accused and then quoted the example of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak who was brought on a stretcher.
He said the accused loses the right to defend himself if he does not surrender to the court.
Anwar Mansoor, the counsel of Musharraf, told the court that he had to reach Islamabad High Court to submit intra-court appeal.
The court adjourned the proceedings after hearing the counsels of both sides and reserved the order on today’s hearing till 3:00pm.
A three-judge bench of the court, headed by Justice Faisal Arab, had summoned the former president after giving its verdict pertaining to the proceedings of the case under criminal procedure. The court had ordered him to appear today (January 16). It was predicted that the court might consider issuance of his arrest warrant.
Well informed sources had told that it was not possible for Musharraf to travel to Islamabad from Rawalpindi hospital where he was admitted and under treatment for his ailments, including the cardiac problem.
“The doctors who conducted his test during the week kept on discussing about the state of his health to allow him to proceed to the federal capital for appearing before the special court or otherwise throughout the day on Wednesday. They ultimately decided to advise the former military ruler to desist from taking the trouble of going to Islamabad.”
The team of doctors was headed by Maj Gen Syed Muhammad Imran Majeed, Commandant of the Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology (AFIC), Rawalpindi.
Musharraf's counsel Ahmed Raza Kasuri, onWednesday, said the doctors had not yet declared Pervez Musharraf to have completely recovered from his illness. He further said that Pervez Musharraf could not take mental pressure for his current state of health.
Ahmad Raza Kasuri said that Pervez Musharraf’s exemption from appearance in the court would be sought verbally. He further stated that the former president was facing security threats as well.
Last week, the court ordered Musharraf to appear before it on January 16 to face charges of high treason after reviewing a medical report from the Armed Forced Institute of Cardiology (AFIC), where he was admitted with heart problems on January 2.
Source: www.geo.tv
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