Opposition parties hail 'historic' verdict.
Byline: Amir Wasim
ISLAMABAD -- The country's major opposition parties on Tuesday termed the special court's verdict in the high treason case against former military dictator retired Gen Pervez Musharraf a 'historic one', terming it a good omen for democracy and supremacy of the Constitution.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, while talking to reporters in Ghotki, Sindh, termed it a 'democratic verdict', expressing the hope that the country's courts would now onward continue to issue democratic rulings.
'In the past, our institutions always stood with non-democratic forces. After this verdict, we can hope that our courts will side with justice and democracy for all days to come,' the PPP chairman said while commenting on the verdict of the special court against the former military dictator for imposing emergency in the country in November 2007.
Asked if the politicians who had supported Gen Musharraf's actions should also receive punishment, the PPP chairman said: 'There is a lot of debate as to the scope of the treason law and whether it should [have included] the 1999 incident [coup] or the 2007 incident. But we should talk about what is in front of us [...] It is a historic decision.'
PPP chief hopes courts will always side with justice, democracy; PML-N spokesperson says decision will be milestone in establishing constitutional importance of parliament
Mr Bhutto-Zardari said that several cases, including the murder case of his mother and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, were still pending before courts and these cases should also be decided.
PPP secretary general Farhatullah Babar said in a statement that history would record that for the first time on a cold December day in 2019, almost coinciding with the anniversary of ignominious surrender in the then East Pakistan, a former dictator/army general was sentenced to death for committing high treason by subverting the Constitution.
'The doors of subverting Constitution may not have been shut permanently by the verdict, but it will put on notice all tinpot dictators, future Bonapartes and adventurers to think multiple times before adventurism. This is a great day, a milestone on the journey towards triumph of the Constitution over dictatorship,' Mr Babar said.
He said the judges, who had delivered this verdict, upheld the supremacy of the Constitution and joined the ranks of nation's heroes. 'As for Musharraf, let him live and even strut around. As long...
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