Predictably, the military leadership has reacted angrily to the conviction and death sentence of its former chief, and has raised fears of a clash of institutions in Pakistan. On Tuesday, a special court in Islamabad found former president General retired Pervez Musharraf guilty of high treason under Article 6 of Pakistan’s constitution.

The landmark court ruling against a former military strongman who ruled the country for almost nine years has intensified political polarization in the country. The court verdict in the treason case that had lingered on for more than five years carries far-reaching consequences for the country’s political stability and the future of its fragile democratic process.

It is the first time in Pakistan’s history that a former head of state has been held accountable for abrogating the constitution. The decision demonstrated great assertiveness from the country’s top judiciary in the face of a powerful military that continues to cast its shadow over the country’s landscape. The groundbreaking court ruling also sends a clear message: no one is above the law.

A strongly worded statement issued after an emergency meeting of top military commanders rejected the court ruling saying the decision has been received with a “lot of pain and anguish by rank and file of Pakistan Armed Forces.” The statement indicates that the military will stand by its former leader whatever the consequences may be.

The development has also worsened the predicament of Imran Khan’s government. The Attorney General joined the military in criticizing the court ruling, saying that the trial was one sided and had not fulfilled the requirements of justice.

Significantly, the Musharraf case verdict came a day after the Supreme Court released its full judgment in army chief General Qamar Bajwa’s extension case

Zahid Hussain

The government is considering challenging Musharraf’s conviction in the Supreme Court. The former president, who is hospitalized in Dubai for serious health reasons has not appeared before the court despite repeated summons. It is improbable that he will be brought to Pakistan.

General Musharraf took power on Oct. 12, 1999 in a coup that ousted Nawaz Sharif’s government. He stepped down as president on August 18, 2008 under the threat of impeachment. Interestingly, the treason case was filed more than five years after Musharraf’s exit. It was Nawaz Sharif who put his nemesis in the dock, ignoring the military’s warnings. He had not forgiven the former military ruler for taking him out handcuffed, and put him on trial for sedition.

Musharraf’s trial was one of the major reasons for Sharif’s confrontation with the Generals that ultimately brought down his government. Although the military leadership maintained that it had distanced itself from Musharraf’s trial, that hasn’t really been the case.

It was evident that Musharraf had been protected by the military which was not expecting such a court ruling-- one that it believes has humiliated the institution. It was also under the pressure of the army in 2016, that the government was compelled to allow the former president to leave the country.

Interestingly, Musharraf was not tried for staging the coup in 1999 against an elected government, but instead for imposing an emergency and holding the Constitution in abeyance in 2007. The main argument for not charging Musharraf for the coup was that the Supreme Court and parliament had indemnified his action.

Musharraf imposed a state of emergency and abrogated the constitution on Nov. 3, 2007. He detained almost all the top judges and accused them of obstructing his government’s battle against terrorism. He closed down all private television channels. But he was forced to backtrack on his actions after widespread protests.

Article 6 of the constitution under which Musharraf was tried says: “Any person who abrogates or subverts or suspends the Constitution by use of force or show force shall be guilty of high treason.” The punishment for high treason under the Pakistani constitution is death or lifetime imprisonment. Many legal experts question whether the 2007 action alone provided sufficient grounds for his conviction under Article 6, ignoring the original takeover.

Significantly, the Musharraf case verdict came a day after the Supreme Court released its full judgment in army chief General Qamar Bajwa’s extension case. The court has allowed the army chief to stay in office for six months, pending regularizing of his extension through an act of parliament. That keeps a sword of Damocles hanging over the army chief, and further heightened tensions between the military and the judiciary.

*Zahid Hussain is an award-winning journalist and author. He is a former scholar at Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholar, USA, and a visiting fellow at Wolfson College, University of Cambridge, and at the Stimson Center in Washington DC. He is author of Frontline Pakistan: The struggle with militant Islam (Columbia university press) and The Scorpion’s tail: The relentless rise of Islamic militants in Pakistan (Simon and Schuster, NY). Frontline Pakistan was the book of the year (2007) by the WSJ.

Twitter: @hidhussain ‏