ISLAMABAD  - The Special Court Thursday ordered the prosecution to supply the copy of investigation report of Federal Investigative Agency (FIA) and other material regarding high treason case to former President and Chief of Army Staff General (retd) Pervez Musharaf by May 14.
A three-judge Special Court Presided over by Justice Faisal Arab and comprised Justice Tahira Safdar and Justice Yawar Ali accepted the former military dictator’s plea for supply of inquiry and investigation report by FIA regarding 3rd November 2007 Emergency, PCO and other actions.
The court order reserved last month directed the prosecution to deliver all the materials pertaining to the investigation of FIA to Musharaf by May 14, 2014.
The court ruled that the process of recording evidence of the prosecution witnesses will commence on May 22, 2014 so that the defense counsel may have seven clear days as provided in Section 265-C of Code of Criminal procedure to examine the documents and the statements in order to prepare his defense.
“Disclosure of all the material having nexus with the alleged crime when demanded by the defense becomes a legal obligation and its withholding a breach thereof,” the court ruled in its verdict.
The court observed that during the hearing of the instant case, Tariq Hassan, who is one of the members of the team of the prosecutors, in reply to a query stated that the prosecution neither claims any immunity nor any secrecy in respect of any material that was collected during the investigation.
The court after allowing the application of Pervez Musharaf directed the prosecutor to file on May 14, 2014, copies of the statements of all the persons that were recorded during the course of the inquiry or the investigation, whether intended to be produced as prosecution witnesses or not, the gist of the evidence of all the witnesses is likely to be adduced at the trial (As required under Section 265-C (2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure), copies of all the documents collected during the course of the inquiry or the investigation that have any nexus with the alleged crime (along with a list containing date and description of each document) and a copy of the Joint Investigation Report prepared by the Joint Investigation Team, inclusively of any separate not if recorded by any member of the Team.
Dr. Khalid Ranjha, a lawyer of former President Pervez Musharaf, had filed a Civil Miscellaneous Application (CMA) in the Special Court, which was later argued by Farogh Naseem seeking that the names of all the co-accused, who aided and abetted and co-nspired allegedly, with the accused, finding mention by the title/designations in the promulgation of emergency order of 3rd of November 2007, may be supplied to the respondent and process be issued to them and they be tried jointly with the respondent.
He had prayed that the names of all the accused who participated in the course of FIA investigation be supplied to the respondent and summoned to face trial, besides seeking inquiry report prepared by the inquiry team.
During the last hearing, counsel for Pervez Musharraf, Barrister Farogh Nasim withdrew the two petitions relating to section 6-A of the Special Court Act-1976.
He submitted that section 6-A of Special Court Act-1976 has expired and his petitions in this regard may kindly be returned and added he would be presenting his reservations verbally.
He had requested the court not to further proceed in the case until the ruling on the application seeking handing over to him a copy of the FIA report is announced.
Later, the court approved the withdrawal of petitions that stated the law under which the accused indicted was superseded by 1981 Ordinance.