Pak court summons Musharraf in Bugti murder case

An anti-terrorism court in Pakistan on Monday issued warrants for former military ruler Pervez Musharraf to appear before it in connection with the Nawab Akbar Bugti murder case.

During the hearing of the case in Quetta, former interior minister Aftab Sherpao and former provincial home minister Mir Shoaib Nowsherwani appeared in the court, while the officials of the Crime Branch presented a report relating to the non-availability of Musharraf.

The court then ordered the production of Musharraf and also issued directives to the jail officials concerned in this regard. Later, the court adjourned the hearing of the case and related bail petitions until 22 October.

Musharraf's lawyers have said he faces security risks and hence the case should be moved out from Quetta. He has been detained at his luxurious farmhouse outside Islamabad, which has been designated a jail, since May.

Meanwhile, the All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) headed by Musharraf protested against the continued detention of the former military dictator terming it "a part of an elaborate political conspiracy contrary to justice and the rule of law."

In a statement, Musharraf's political adviser Chaudry Sarfraz Anjum Kahlon stated that the former president "was being punished for protecting the unity and integrity of Pakistan against violent actors".

"All cases currently registered against Musharraf are politically orientated and devoid of any reality or legal merit. It is a grave injustice that the former president has been incarcerated for near to six months and serious questions are being raised about the validity of the legal process," he claimed.