RAWALPINDI: An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) of Rawalpindi rejected on Monday an application filed by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) seeking separation of the trial of former president retired Gen Pervez Musharraf from that of other accused being tried in the Benazir Bhutto murder case.

The court, however, decided to try Gen Musharraf de novo (afresh) and to reframe charges against him because he had been absent from ATC proceedings since 2011 when the FIA implicated him in the case.

The ATC indicted Gen Musharraf in the case in February, 2011, and in August the same year he was declared a proclaimed offender and his property was attached because of his absence.

On Monday FIA special prosecutor Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali submitted the application before ATC Judge Chaudhry Habibur Rehman for separating the trial of Gen Musharraf in the case.

He pleaded before the court that the nature of allegations against the former president was different from that of other accused in the case.

He said that because of Gen Musharraf the trial of other accused had already been delayed by over five years.

The ATC in its order said if the trail of the former president was not conducted jointly with other accused the case might be prejudiced.