Islamabad: With the powerful Pakistan Army publicly backing former dictator Pervez Musharraf after he was sentenced to death for treason, Prime Minister Imran Khan discussed the issue with his top party aides on Wednesday even as his government decided to support the retired General’s appeal against the “unfair” verdict.
Former Pakistan President and military ruler Musharraf was sentenced to death in absentia on Tuesday for high treason following a six-year legal case.
A three-member special court here convicted 76-year-old Musharraf of violating the Constitution by unlawfully declaring emergency rule while he was in power, in a case that had been pending since 2013.
Prime Minister Khan, who returned from Geneva, convened an emergency meeting of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s core committee to discuss the sentencing of Musharraf, Geo News reported.
Following his sentencing, the Pakistan Army said Musharraf can “never be a traitor” and the verdict against him has been received with “lot of pain and anguish” by Pakistan Armed Forces personnel.
An ex-Army Chief, Chairman Joint Chief of Staff Committee and President of Pakistan, who has served the country for over 40 years, fought wars for the defense of the country can surely never be a traitor,” Pakistan Army spokesman Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor said in a statement.
“The due legal process seems to have been ignored including constitution of special court, denial of fundamental right of self defence, undertaking individual specific proceedings and concluding the case in haste,” he said.
“Armed Forces of Pakistan expect that justice will be dispensed in line with Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan,” Ghafoor stressed, piling pressure on the government.
Pakistan Army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa also weighed in and said the armed forces have brought stability by failing all inimical forces operating against the country.
“We have brought stability by failing all inimical forces operating against Pakistan. We shall never let it go away at any cost,” he was quoted as saying by Army’s twitter handle.
Musharraf has now become the first military ruler to receive the capital punishment in Pakistan’s history. Alarmed by the military’s public statement, Prime Minister Khan quickly deployed two of his trusted aides to assuage the Army to say that the government would defend the self-exiled, ailing ex-president during the hearing of an appeal to be filed on his behalf.
“I will defend the law in the case but not any individual,” said Attorney General Anwar Mansoor Khan in a late-night press conference along with Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Information Firdous Ashiq Awan.
He said Musharraf was not given the right of fair trial and the judgement was announced in absentia without recording statement of the accused.
Khan’s top aide, Awan, said some people were celebrating the special court’s verdict against Gen Musharraf and hoping for a clash between the institutions. (PTI)
