Pervez Musharraf, the former President of Pakistan had to flee an Islamabad courtroom Thursday
April 18, 2013 – Pervez Musharraf, the former President of Pakistan had to flee an Islamabad courtroom Thursday only minutes after a judge ordered authorities to arrest him. The judge’s decision deals another blow to the former president’s hopes of bringing his political career back to life at the general elections next month.
Musharraf’s quick exit from the court symbolized the lack of influence the former head of the army has. He once dominated the political landscape of Pakistan, but his attempt to stage a triumphant political comeback has received a great deal of scorn.
The judge’s order pushed the judiciary system in Pakistan into territory it has yet to experience, as it challenged an unwritten rule that has been longstanding that the members of the army’s top ranks, which ruled the country for years, are untouchable.
The head of Musharraf’s political party said that the High Court in Islamabad revoked the former general’s bail and ordered his immediate arrest. Lawyers for Musharraf will appeal the arrest order later today in the Supreme Court, they announced.
Despite death threats from the Taliban and a number of legal challenges, the former general returned to his country after a self-imposed exile of nearly four years in Dubai and London. He returned in March hoping to win a National Assembly seat at the polls on May 11.
However, since his arrival, he has been at the mercy of different judges whose memories remain raw from a showdown that took place on 2007 when he terminated the post of the chief justice, placed the chief justice’s colleagues under house arrest and his lawyers fought battles with Pakistani’s police.
Earlier in the week, Musharraf’s hopes of taking part in the elections were diminished when officers from the elections barred him from being on the ballot because of the legal challenges he is currently facing.