Musharraf faces arrest on return

ISLAMABAD - Capital Police on Tuesday morning registered an FIR against former president Pervez Musharraf for detaining judges of the apex court including Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.Aslam Ghumman Advocate got registered a case in Secretariat Police Station alleging Musharraf for detaining over 60 judges of the Supreme Court of Pakistan following the imposition of November 3, 2007 emergency.Police after seeking legal advice from legal branch registered the case under section 344/34 of Criminal Procedure Code of Pakistan.Ghumman in the FIR stated that the former president not only detained the judges but also harmed their families by sealing their houses and deputing police force there. He added that even the children of detained judges were not allowed to continue their studies. He also gave the reference of first session of the National Assembly in which Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani had ordered the concerned department to free the judges.Reuters/AFP add: Musharraf had imposed a state of emergency and sacked about 60 judges on November 3, 2007 when the Supreme Court appeared poised to declare him ineligible to contest a presidential election while in military uniform.On a plea filed by lawyer Mohammad Aslam Ghuman, Islamabad district and sessions judge Mohammad Akmal directed police to register a case against Musharraf, who is currently in Europe.“We have registered a case against Pervez Musharraf under Pakistan’s Penal Code,” Hakim Khan, the chief officer of the relevant police station, told AFP.“He could either be arrested on his return or through Interpol,” Khan told Reuters. If convicted he Musharraf could be jailed for three years, Khan said.The registration of the case will now see police investigate the charges levelled against the former head of state, who seized power in a 1999 coup.“It is a criminal case,” another police official told AFP.This is the first time that such a case has been brought against a former military ruler.“He detained judges and ousted them illegally so he has to be tried for his illegal and unconstitutional actions,” Ghuman told Reuters.Tuesday’s move comes just weeks after a 14-member bench led by Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry last month declared Musharraf’s acts illegal when he dismissed top judges and ordered their detention.
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