ISLAMABAD, Aug 10 A sessions court ordered the Islamabad Police on Monday to register a criminal case against former president Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf for detaining superior court judges and their families in their houses after proclaiming the Nov 3, 2007, emergency.

The case had not been registered till late in the evening, but a senior police officer told Dawn that it would “definitely be done within a few hours”.

Additional District and Sessions judge Mohammad Akmal Khan issued the order in response to petitions filed by advocate Aslam Ghuman about four months ago. He requested the court to direct police to register the case after the office of Senior Superintendent of Police did not record his complaint.

The petition says that former president Musharraf illegally imposed Provisional Constitution Order on Nov 3, 2007, and detained Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry and 60 other judges of superior judiciary along with their families after they had refused to take oath under the PCO.

The petition seeks the trial of Musharraf and others who played a role in implementing the PCO.

The petitioner pleaded that detaining the superior court judges amounted to interference in official business since the present government's restoration of these judges to their pre-emergency position had rendered their detention illegal.

Advocate Ghuman said that Monday's hearing had been fixed for the arguments of respondent - district attorney, because he had earlier informed the court that comments from the law ministry were necessary.

The court gave him 14 opportunities but he failed to get the comments. Then the judge ordered the additional station house officer of the secretariat police station to register a case against the former president, he added.

Judge Khan directed the additional SHO, who was present in the court on behalf of the SSP, to record the statement of Advocate Ghuman under section 154 of the Criminal Procedure Code and register a case, the complainant said.

The judge also ordered that a copy of his order be sent to the Inspector General of Police and SSP, who told the court that the direction had been executed, Advocate Ghuman said. The judge also asked the police officers to conduct an impartial inquiry, he added.

Later, the advocate visited the secretariat police station and recorded his statement. After that the SHO rushed to the office of the SSP for further action.

Sources said that an emergency meting was called in the interior ministry, which was attended by senior officers of the interior and law ministries and officers of police and their legal branch.

The sources told Dawn that a case would be registered against the former president under section 344 of the Pakistan Penal Code which says “Whoever wrongfully confines any person for ten days or more, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term, which may extend to three years, and shall also be liable to fine.”

A large number of former and present parliamentarians, bureaucrats and police officials were also likely to be named in the case, the sources added.