From Al-Jazeera
Islamabad, Pakistan – Pervez Musharraf, the former Pakistani president and army chief, has been indicted by a special court on treason charges, and will face the death penalty if found guilty.
In the court room in Islamabad on Monday, Musharraf was read the indictment by the three-member bench, led by Justice Faisal Arab. The special court has been hearing arguments pertaining to the dismissal of judges and suspension of the constitution by Musharraf on November 3, 2007.
Musharraf has denied all the charges, alleging that the case is politically motivated.
His lawyers asked the court to authorise travel to the United Arab Emirates so he could visit his mother and travel to the US for medical treatment. The court dismissed the request, saying it was up to the government to decide whether Musharraf could leave the country.
The former president appeared in court in person for the second time since being hospitalised on January 2 while en route to an earlier hearing. He has since been receiving treatment for a heart condition at the Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology (AFIC) in Rawalpindi, the Pakistani capital’s twin city.
“The indictment has set the precedent that a military adventurer will be held responsible for flouting the law,” said Nadir Hassan, a Karachi-based journalist and columnist.
“The ‘doctrine of necessity’, through which the judiciary has given legal cover to coups is now dead. Hopefully, this deters future generals from assuming they can do what they want while the politicians and judges cower before them and give them cover for their actions,” Hassan told Al Jazeera.
