Musharraf death sentence: Pak Court calls to 'hang corpse for 3 days' if found dead

The Pakistan Court has directed the law enforcement agencies of the country to apprehend former dictator General Pervez Musharraf, who has been sentenced to death. Furthermore, in a grisly statement, the Pakistani Court has asked to 'drag and hang the corpse' of the country's former President in the national capital for three days in case of his death. Musharraf was sentenced to death in absentia on Tuesday for high treason following a six-year legal case. 

After the death penalty was met with opposition from both the Pakistani Army and Imran Khan-led government, the Pakistan Court in a statement said, "We direct the Law Enforcement Agencies to strive their level best to apprehend the fugitive and to ensure that the punishment is inflicted as per law and if found dead, his corpse be dragged to the D-Chowk, Islamabad, Pakistan and be hanged for 3 days."

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The absconding former President of Pakistan has been living in Dubai since 2016 after Pakistan's Court lifted a travel ban allowing him to leave the country to seek medical treatment. A three-member special court here convicted 76-year-old Musharraf of violating the Constitution by unlawfully declaring emergency rule while he was in power, under the Nawaz Sharif regime, in a case that had been pending since 2013. Musharraf seized power by ousting then-Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif in a 1999 bloodless coup. He has also served as Pakistan's president from 2001 to 2008. Special Assistant to the PM on Information and Broadcasting, Firdous Ashiq Awan, told the media that Barrister Ali Zafar and Advocate Babar Awan briefed the party leaders about the special court's decision against Musharraf.

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Imran Khan defends Musharraf

Alarmed by the public stance of the Pakistan Army-led by Gen Bajwa, Imran Khan was quick to deploy two of his trusted aides to assuage the Pakistan Army to say that the government would defend the self-exiled, former President during the hearing of an appeal.  "I will defend the law in the case but not any individual," said Attorney General Anwar Mansoor Khan in a late-night press conference along with Awan.

Imran Khan, defending Musharraf, raised doubts on the "urgency in pronouncing the judgment when Musharraf was in critical condition in ICU" in Dubai. "There is no question that a person who had committed treason must be punished but in this case, the right of fair trial guaranteed under the Constitution was not ensured. A trial should not just be fair but also seen to be fair," he was quoted as saying by Dawn newspaper. Pakistan and the UAE have no extradition treaty and Emirati authorities are unlikely to arrest Musharraf.

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(with PTI inputs)