KARACHI, Nov 12: The Sindh High Court issued notice on Tuesday to the federal law officer, the chief provincial law officer and prosecutor general, asking them to submit their comments on an application filed by retired Gen Pervez Musharraf seeking removal of restrictions on his travel abroad because he wanted to see his ailing mother in Dubai.
A division bench, headed by Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, heard the application filed by the former president, praying to the court to modify its earlier order restraining him from leaving the country without permission of the trial courts.
The applicant’s counsel, Advocate A.Q. Halepota, submitted that Mr Musharraf had appeared on March 29 before an SHC division bench and requested for a 21-day transitory bail for enabling him to surrender before the trial courts in cases pertaining to the killing of Akbar Bugti and Benazir Bhutto.
The court extended his bail for 21 days with the condition that he would not leave the country without permission of the trial courts and his name was placed on the Exit Control List.
Advocate Halepota said the trial courts had confirmed Musharraf’s bail in both cases.
He said the former army chief had also been granted bail in a case relating to murder of Lal Masjid cleric Ghazi Abdul Rasheed during an army operation in 2007.
The counsel said Gen Musharraf wanted to see his 95-year-old mother who was seriously ill in Dubai. The lawyer said it was the uppermost desire of Gen Musharraf to be with his mother after his release on bail.
He said placing the name on the ECL was a violation of fundamental rights and prayed to the court to modify its earlier order in this regard.
After hearing initial arguments, the SHC issued notice to the deputy attorney general and the Sindh advocate general and prosecutor general to file comments by Nov 18.
On March 22, the high court had granted protective bail to the retired general in three high-profile cases in which he was facing arrest warrants. Then chief justice Mushir Alam granted him protective bail for 10 days in the case of ‘illegal confinement’ of 62 judges after declaring a state of emergency on Nov 3, 2007.
The same day, a two-judge bench headed by Justice Sajjad Ali Shah granted protective bail to him for two weeks in the Benazir and Bugti cases, in which he was facing non-bailable arrest warrants.
Gen Musharraf’s daughter Ayla Raza had filed a constitutional petition on behalf of her father to seek protective bail so that he could appear in court to defend himself.
On March 29, the two benches accepted the 69-year-old former ruler’s request for extension of the bail in the three cases.
However, he was barred from leaving the country without the trial courts’ permission by the SHC. A shoe was hurled at him during the appearance -- the second time in two years.