ISLAMABAD, Jan 18: The government agreed on Wednesday to book former military ruler Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf in a treason case after members from both sides of the aisle in the Senate demanded his trial for holding the Constitution in abeyance twice.

Responding to the demand made by a number of members during the Senate proceedings, Interior Minister Rehman Malik said it was the prerogative of the government to register a case under Article 6 of the Constitution, but a complaint from an aggrieved party had to be there for it.

He described the October 12, 1999, action of Gen (retd) Musharraf to oust an elected prime minister as a clear violation of Article 6 and said the government was ready to go for registration of a case even if a brief complaint was filed by the PML-N.

The PML-N instantly agreed with the idea, with Syed Zafar Ali Shah saying he could do it in five minutes and a case should be registered tomorrow (Thursday).

The issue was raised in the house by Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security Mian Raza Rabbani whoreferred to a letter reportedly written by a confidant of Gen (retd) Musharraf to three US Congressmen seeking to secure assurance from the US on playing role to ensure he will not be arrested on arrival in Pakistan, his name should not be placed on the exit control list.

Mr Rabbani used the forum to convey a message to the United States that it was an internal matter of Pakistan involving law of the land and courts and any meddling in it would not be acceptable at any cost.

Leader of the Opposition in the Senate Abdul Ghafoor Haidri said the list of crimes committed by Gen (retd) Musharraf during his days in power was long, including violation of the Constitution and killing of Akbar Bugti. He held Gen (retd) Musharraf responsible for the wave of terror gripping the country, suicide attacks and drone strikes.

He said such people had never been punished in the past and the time had come to do it now to ensure no dictator in future dared to do it.

Several other Senators, including Prof Khurshid Ahmed, Mir Hasil Bizenjo and Zahid Khan, also expressed their views on Gen (retd) Musharraf’s trial on treason charge with Zahid Khan going to the extent of stressing that the generals and political personalities who abetted Gen (retd) Musharraf should also be taken to task.

The interior minister assured the house that Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf would be arrested on landing in the country, pointing out that he had been declared a proclaimed offender (PO) in the Benazir Bhutto murder case.

He said the law on POs was very clear and even a common citizen could catch such persons and hand them over to police.

“Let them write letters to anybody they like. We will act according to our law and the Constitution,” he remarked.

Mr Malik said the incumbent chief justice was also directly affected by an action of Gen (retd) Musharraf and asked the apex court to take suo motu notice of this as well.

He also proposed passage of a resolution by the house seeking trial of Gen (retd) Musharraf under Article 6 and said a house committee should be formed to prepare a draft.

But before the sense of the house could be taken, Raza Rabbani observed that the house could not become a party in registration of a case and told the chair that technically speaking he could not form a committee.

Deputy Chairman of the Senate Jan Mohammad Jamali, who was presiding over the session, asked a few members to meet the interior minister to discuss how to go about it.

Claiming that the PPP did not come into power as a result of National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) Mr Malik informed the house that he was in the process of writing a book in which he would disclose the name of the author of NRO’s draft.

“General Hamid is a witness to the fact that we had rejected it,” he said.

He said the guard of honour was given to Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf when he left the country under the standard operating procedure.

The house will meet again at 5pm on Thursday.