State TV hands over Nov 3 tapes to Musharraf trial court
By: Usman Manzoor
ISLAMABAD: In an extraordinary development, the state-run TV has handed over all the tapes of Nov 3, 2007 Emergency, imposed by ex-dictator Pervez Musharraf to the Anti-Terrorism Court hearing the Judges’ detention case against the retired General.
The ATC had issued notices to the ate-run TV producers who recorded the speech of Pervez Musharraf on Nov 3, 2007 and ordered them to hand over the relevant tapes to the police. Well-placed sources in the state-run TV told The News that without the slightest delay, the tapes were handed over to the Investigating Officer of Margalla Police Station on Thursday. The sources said that Musharraf’s recorded speech was aired on the state-run TV at 11:45 pm on the Emergency day while the emergency had already been imposed.
November 3, 2007 is termed as one of the blackest days in the history of Pakistan when a usurper in the capacity of Chief of Army Staff abrogated the Constitution of Pakistan, trampled it under his boots and imposed emergency rule. As a result of Musharraf’s emergency, in one of the most unique and stinking manner, dozens of superior courts’ judges were detained. The world also saw that the news channels were ordered off air and to teach Geo a lesson, its sports channel was blacked out.
The state-run TV was the only channel which was on air on that black day. The state-run television has remained subservient to Musharraf during his eight years rule however it is said about the TV that it changes with the change in governments.
The sources said that Pervez Musharraf himself came to the state-run TV office to record his speech on November 3. The ATC had asked the police to initiate legal proceedings against Musharraf for detaining over 60 judges, including Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, after the proclamation of a state of emergency in the country on November 3, 2007.
It is a co-incident that in 1999 Pervez Musharraf put Mian Nawaz Sharif behind the bars and ruled the country and after fourteen years, Mian Nawaz Sharif is again ruling the country and Pervez Musharraf is languishing in jail. Now trial of Pervez Musharraf is a test case for PML-N as the PPP government didn’t dare to take action against ex-army chief in Asghar Khan case despite having clear orders from the Supreme Court. Now that the judiciary is independent, the onus of trial of Pervez Musharraf is upon PML-N.
The judges’ confinement case, in which Musharraf’s bail has been rejected, stems from the illegal order of the ex-dictator to detain several top judges of superior judiciary during the emergency. The case is based on an FIR against the retired general registered on August 11, 2009 on the complaint of Chaudhry Muhammad Aslam Ghumman advocate.
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