Turning down the Special Court’s Order, the High Court ruled that treason is an offense which cannot be committed by a single person
The Lahore High Court in Pakistan has overturned the death penalty handed over to Former President of Pakistan and 4-Star General of Pakistan Army– Parvez Musharraf, by terming the previous legal proceeding as unconstitutional.
In December 2019, a 3-member Special Court sentenced Musharraf to death for high treason, following a 6-year legal case. He was held guilty for violating the constitution by unlawfully declaring emergency rule.
Turning down the Special Court’s Order, the High Court ruled that treason is an offense which cannot be committed by a single person. The High Court also observed that the formation of the Special Court was illegal and hence the convict is no longer a suspect.
Interacting with media, the Government Prosecutor – Ishtiaq A. Khan said, “The filing of the complaint, the constitution of the court, the selection of the prosecution team are illegal, declared to be illegal… And at the end of the day the full judgment has been set aside.”
The trouble started when, in 1999, Musharraf seized power in a military coup and became the President of Pakistan in 2001. In 2007, Musharraf declared emergency in the country and suspended the Constitution of Pakistan. He even called off the elections for the National Assembly of Pakistan indefinitely. In addition, he dismissed the Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and blacked out independent TV outlets. In his defence, Musharraf said that his decision was meant to stabilize the country and fight rising Islamist extremism.
This was widely criticised by United States (U.S.). Surrendering to U.S. pressure, Musharraf lifted the emergency and called for the General Elections in Pakistan where his political partly performed horribly. In 2008, he steeped down to avoid impeachment.
Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body levels charges against a Government official. Impeachment does not in itself remove the official definitively from office; it is similar to an indictment in criminal law, and thus it is essentially the statement of charges against the official. Whereas in some countries the individual is provisionally removed, in others they can remain in office during the trial
Later, he returned to Pakistan in 2013 when it was holding its next elections. However, this turned against him as he got entangled in court cases relating to his misuse of power. Nawaz Sharif became the Prime Minister of Pakistan and initiated a treason trial against Musharraf in March 2014.
Musharraf challenged the allegations and said that the charges were politically motivated. He even confirmed that his decisions in 2007 were agreed by the Government and Cabinet. But his arguments were turned down by the Courts and he was accused of acting illegally. In 2016, he moved to Dubai after the Supreme Court lifted the travel ban on him on medical grounds. He has been living in Dubai since then.
It is for the first time in the history of Pakistan that a former 4-Star General of Pakistan Army was tried and found guilty of high treason. As per the Pakistani Law, high treason is a crime that carries the death penalty or life imprisonment.
