One of the
major causes of anxiety for the Pakistani nation today is the trial of retired
general Pervez Musharraf for high treason arising from the issuance of the
“provisional constitutional order” on 3rd November, 2007. It is interesting
that when the General staged the coup in protest against his dismissal,he was
hailed as a hero by some and as a great leader by many for a few years in the
beginning. Even the Supreme court gave him 3 years to do what he liked in
national interest. It is a pity that he did not keep the promise to shed his
uniform and ignored some of the basic infrastructure development causing severe
hardships to the nation in the years to come.
The issuance
of the PCO is considered tantamount to the subversion of the Constitution of
the Islamic republic of Pakistan and can be construed as being within the
purview of article 6 of the Constitution.
The
determination as to whether the issuance and enforcement of the PCO are acts
punishable under the High Treason act of 1973 is to be done by a court of law
to be approached in writing by the government of Pakistan.
The High
Treason act of 1973 is a hastily written law under which even the abrogation of
the constitution of a private volleyball club would be punishable by death
retroactively from 23rd March, 1956. Obviously this law was made to
intimidate and keep in check Field Marshal Ayub Khan. It is really strange that
divulging secrets related to national security or cooperating with Pakistan’s
enemies are not listed as acts of high treason. Maybe there is another law for
that.
As for his
accomplices under sub-clause b of article 6, people he consulted before issuing
the order cannot be charged as abettors. He may even have prayed to God for
guidance before signing that document, but I would not recommend the justices
to issue orders to arrest God. The men who should also be in prison are the men
who actively participated in drafting the PCO and its subsequent enforcement as
ministers, heads of departments and institutions etc. Mr. Musharraf should
cooperate with the investigators and reveal their names without delay.
We should
also not forget that Gen. Musharraf has a right to defend or justify his
actions before the court yet to be found and he should not be called a traitor
in anticipation.
