Musharraf flees court after order for arrest

Guards help Pak ex-Prez slip away from high court

ISLAMABAD: Former president Pervez Musharraf dramatically fled the Islamabad high court on Thursday after judges ordered his arrest, an ignominious retreat for a man who once dominated Pakistan and hoped to revive his political fortunes.

As his bail application in a case relating to the house arrest of top judges in 2007 was rejected, Musharraf was whisked out of court by bodyguards in black suits and into a waiting armoured vehicle that drove him straight to his high-security farmhouse in the Chak Shahzad area.

Most of his security detail are Pakistan Rangers, who come under the army’s command, and the local police did not stop the getaway. Outside the plush Mediterranean-style farmhouse, which boasts a swimming pool and jogging track, security officials stood waiting for instructions on how to proceed. A police team was sent for negotiations but returned without success.

The court asked the city police chief why his men allowed Musharraf to leave when in fact they should have arrested him. It also declared his escape from court a criminal act.

Analysts as well as Musharraf’s lawyer, Ahmad Raza Kasuri, said the powerful military establishment would step in to protect “one of its own”. “He is a former army chief. The army high command will not allow a former COAS to be seen in handcuffs,” Kasuri told Geo Television.

It is also believed the army is stopping Musharraf from leaving his house.

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