ISLAMABAD: Justice Aamer Farooq of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday dismissed a petition filed by former president Gen Pervez Musharraf to quash the trial proceedings as well as the process initiated to confiscate his property for absconding in the Lal Masjid cleric’s murder case.

Separately, a trial court deferred the issuance of red warrants against the former military ruler in the same case.

Akhtar Shah, the counsel for Gen Musharraf, filed a petition with the IHC against the order of the trial court declaring him an absconder and issuing his perpetual warrants in the murder case of Abdul Rashid Ghazi.

The cleric was killed during the July 2007 operation when Gen Musharraf was the chief of army staff and the president of Pakistan.

Before Justice Farooq, Advocate Shah contended that since Ghazi was killed during a military operation on Lal Masjid in 2007, under Article 245 of the Constitution such matters cannot be heard in courts.

“The military acts in aid of civil power when called upon to do so.” The counsel claimed that the prosecution did not obtain the mandatory approval from the government before filing a formal complaint against his client.

He requested the court to quash the proceedings against Gen Musharraf in the murder case.

The counsel, however, could not give a justification whether a fugitive of law could be represented through a counsel before surrendering.

As per the legal practice, a fugitive or an absconder could only be represented through an attorney after he surrenders to the trial court concerned.

Meanwhile, Additional District and Sessions Judge Pervezul Qadir Memon deferred the issuance of red warrants against Gen Musharraf in the murder case.

He directed the interior ministry to submit a comprehensive report along with the standing operating procedure (SOP) in this regard.

The application filed by the son of the deceased cleric requested the court to issue red warrants against the former military dictator.

However, in the challan submitted to the trial court in 2013, the police declared Gen Musharraf innocent due to want of evidence and left him at the mercy of the court.

Published in Dawn, April 7th, 2017