RAWALPINDI, March 26: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) may contact Interpol for the execution of a non-bailable warrant for Pervez Musharraf’s arrest for his alleged role in the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, a prosecutor said on Saturday. An anti-terrorism court had issued the warrant on Feb 19 to be delivered to the former president’s London address after the FIA included him in the list of the accused and declared him an absconder.

Prosecutor Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali said Interpol could be contacted as the court had directed the FIA to submit a report about its efforts for execution of its orders.

On Saturday, judge Rana Nisar Ahmed fixed April 2 for the next hearing after recording the statement of FIA deputy director Khalid Rasool, a member of the joint investigation team that launched reinvestigation into the case in August 2009.

The FIA officer informed the court that a reminder had been sent to the British authorities about the execution of the arrest warrant and more efforts would be made to arrest the retired general.

Later talking to reporters, the prosecutor said that although Pakistan did not have an extradition treaty with Britain, the government, under section 4(2) of The Extradition Act of Pakistan, 1972, could request any country for the custody of an accused.

He said the court could not indict seven other accused if Mr Musharraf was not arrested or declared a proclaimed offender.

The investigators had based their conclusion about the former president’s alleged role in the assassination on the statements of Intelligence Bureau’s former chief Ijaz Shah and Interior Ministry’s former spokesman Brig (retd) Javaid Iqbal Cheema.

According to the FIA, Mr Musharraf, who was president when Ms Bhutto was killed on Dec 27, 2007, had failed to provide her with adequate security.