LHC hears Musharraf plea to halt high treason case's verdict announcement

The Lahore High Court is hearing former president Pervez Musharraf's plea to halt announcement of the verdict in the high treason case against him by a special court.

The special court on November 19 concluded the trial proceedings in the case against Musharraf for declaring a state emergency on November 3, 2007. The three-member court is expected to announce the verdict today.

The petition was filed by Musharraf after the special court reserved the verdict and said that it would be announced on November 28 on the basis of the available record, Dawn had reported.

However, Prime Minister Imran Khan-led government has also challenged the verdict announcement in the Islamabad High Court.

After IHC halted the verdict announcement, the special court earlier this month said that the verdict would be announced on December 17.

The high treason trial of the former leader has been pending since December 2013 when he was booked in the case.

He was indicted on March 31, 2014 and the prosecution had tabled the entire evidence before the special court in September the same year.

However, due to litigation at appellate forums, Musharraf's trial lingered on and he left Pakistan in March 2016 "to seek medical treatment."

The former Pakistan President was then declared an absconder as he failed to appear in court despite repeated summons and the court issued a directive to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to arrest him.