ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Saturday challenged a Sindh High Court order to remove former president retired General Pervez Musharraf’s name from the exit control list (ECL), fearing that if allowed to proceed abroad he may not return to stand trial for treason.

The appeal, filed two days after the high court’s order, has been fixed for hearing on Monday before a three-judge Supreme Court bench, consisting of Justices Mian Saqib Nisar, Asif Saeed Khosa and Ejaz Afzal Khan.

Attorney General Salman Aslam Butt is expected to request the apex court to suspend the June 12 verdict and issue directions to keep Mr Musharraf’s name on the ECL.

The former military ruler may also be restrained from going abroad without the permission of the Supreme Court, the appeal states.

Petition maintains if the former military ruler is allowed to leave country, he is unlikely to return

On June 12, the same day when the high court announced its order, Mr Musharraf’s defence team applied to the Interior Ministry, seeking permission for him to travel abroad as soon as possible, in view of his mother’s deteriorating health.

But the government’s swift reaction was not received well in the Musharraf camp. Senior counsel Chaudhry Faisal Hussain regretted the decision to file the appeal, calling it “a political move”, allegedly made at the prime minister’s behest as “there was no legal ground available to the government”.

“The SHC has comprehensively dealt with all the questions raised in this appeal and the apex court is being needlessly tested by the government,” he said, adding that instead of taking decisions in accordance with the high court’s orders the government was passing the buck on to the apex court.

However, Advocate Hussain was hopeful that the Supreme Court would throw out the government’s appeal.

In its petition, the government maintained that though the right to travel abroad was a fundamental right, the federal government could place reasonable restrictions on Mr Musharraf’s movement in the public interest.

The appeal argues that since he stands accused, among other offences, of the grave crime of treason the government had rightfully placed his name on the ECL.

“He (Musharraf) has all the reasons not to come back to Pakistan once he leaves and his trial, which is at an advanced stage, would simply be brought to a standstill,” the appeal contended.

If Mr Musharraf is allowed to proceed abroad, he cannot be extradited. This is because Pakistan’s extradition treaty with the UAE does not cover ‘political crimes’.

The petition states that the former president stood accused in a number of other cases, such as the Nawab Akbar Bugti murder case and the Lal Masjid case, both of whom are currently sub judice before trial courts.

Published in Dawn, June 15th, 2014