Former Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf's medical report did not show any illness that justified his skipping hearings in his treason trial, the government prosecutor said today.
Prosecutor Akram Sheikh asked the special court set up to try 70-year-old Musharraf on charges of high treason for imposing emergency in 2007 to summon him, saying the former army chief had not undergone an angiography since he was admitted to a military hospital on January 2. This proves Musharraf's condition is not serious, and many aspects of the medical report were like that of a sportsman while the condition of his heart was comparable to that of an 18-year-old, Sheikh claimed. "The hospital will of course not expel its patient. It is Musharraf's prerogative whether to check out or not," Sheikh told reporters outside the special court.
He said Pakistan has many good medical centres and there is no need to send Musharraf abroad for treatment.
However, Musharraf's lawyer Ahmed Raza Kasuri said the former president needs more time to rest and recover. He contended that Musharraf's health condition is "serious".
Kasuri criticised the media for getting access to Musharraf's medical report and called it a "privacy breach". Musharraf will request the court to exempt him from hearings until he completely recovers, he added. The three judges of the special court had on Tuesday exempted Musharraf from hearings for two days after his medical report was submitted by the Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology.
Musharraf was rushed to the hospital in Rawalpindi after he developed heart problems while being driven to the special court.
The former military strongman had missed two earlier hearings after explosives were found near his home. Musharraf is currently barred from travelling abroad but there has been rampant speculation that he would be allowed to leave Pakistan for medical treatment.
During today's hearing, Anwar Mansoor Khan, counsel for Musharraf, told the court that he was threatened to give up the case last night, while his driver was "tortured" in Karachi.
He said he had provided the phone number of the person who threatened him to police chiefs of Sindh and Islamabad and an FIR had also been registered.
The special court said it would not tolerate such acts and would direct authorities to protect the prosecutor and defence lawyers. PTI SAP NSA RHL SAI 01091535 NNNN
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