Sharif questions directive allowing Musharraf to file nomination papers

Islamabad, June 8 (IANS) Ousted Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Friday questioned a Supreme Court directive that allows former President Pervez Musharraf to file his nomination papers to contest the July 25 general elections.

Speaking to the media here, Sharif said it was beyond comprehension that Musharraf had been permitted to contest the elections, reports Dawn news.

"How could the Chief Justice extend such an offer to someone accused of high treason?" Sharif asked.

"This is something which is beyond my understanding..."

"While Musharraf has been offered such a relaxation, my plea for just three days exemption from appearing in court was turned down," the ousted premier said, adding that he had wished to visit his ailing wife Kulsoom Nawaz, who is currently undergoing treatment for cancer in London.

The directive allows Musharraf to file his nomination papers on the condition that he would appear in person before the Supreme Court on June 13 in Lahore to attend a hearing.

On Thursday, a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar took up Musharraf's plea against his 2013 disqualification for life by the Peshawar High Court, reports Dawn news. 

Following his disqualification in April 2013, Musharraf's nomination papers for Karachi's National Assembly seat in the polls that year were rejected on the grounds that he had held in abeyance and suspended the Constitution on November 3, 2007, detained and removed a number of superior court judges and publicly insulted then Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.

In addition to the treason trial, Musharraf is facing a number of criminal cases.

The former military dictator left for Dubai in 2016 to "seek medical treatment" and has not returned since.