Musharraf seeks acquittal in Ghazi murder case

ISLAMABAD: Former president retired General Pervez Musharraf on Saturday moved a local court, seeking acquittal in the murder case of Lal Masjid cleric Abdul Rashid Ghazi. Advocate Akhtar Shah, the counsel for Gen Musharraf, moved the application before Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) Wajid Ali. The former military ruler has already been on bail in the case after Islamabad police declared him ‘innocent’ in the challan they had submitted before the court on October 30 last year. Musharraf was arrested in Ghazi murder case on October 10 after he managed to get bail in Benazir Bhutto and Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti murder cases as well as judges’ detention case. The police in the challan submitted in Ghazi murder case had maintained that there was no evidence or any eyewitness whatsoever which could prove Musharraf’s involvement in the murder, but put him at the mercy of the court. Advocate Shah argued before the ADSJ that Gen Musharraf did not order Lal Masjid operation rather it was the district administration that had requisitioned the army after the police expressed their inability to maintain the government’s writ. He produced correspondence among the Islamabad police, district administration, and interior and defence ministries regarding requisition of military for Lal Masjid operation. The defence counsel also claimed that the Islamabad administration in its application admitted that the Lal Masjid clerics had challenged the writ of the government by establishing state within a state. He said the interior ministry after completing the formalities requisitioned the army on July 3, 2007 and military was deployed outside the mosque the following day. During the proceedings, advocate Shah also filed an application, requesting the court to exempt the former president from appearing before the court until a decision on his application filed for his acquittal was taken. The counsel said Gen Musharraf was seeking exemption for security reasons. On the other hand, Tariq Asad, counsel for the complainant Haroon Rashid, son of Abdul Rashid Ghazi, opposed the exemption. The court, however, exempted Gen Musharraf from appearing on Saturday (May 3) but summoned him on the next date of hearing on May 22.