Pakistan court orders Musharraf's release

Pakistan's Supreme Court Thursday issued orders for the release of former president Pervez Musharraf a day after he was granted bail in the murder case of a tribal elder, Xinhua reported.

Musharraf has already got bail in two other cases including the 2007 assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

The court Wednesday granted bail to Musharraf with the judges observing that substantial evidence was not available to implicate the former president in the criminal conspiracy regarding Nawab Akbar Bugti's murder during a military operation in 2006.

Musharraf's lawyers Thursday deposited two bail bonds of one million rupees each on the court's orders.

The bail has fuelled speculation in the Pakistani media that Musharraf could leave the country.

The former president also faces high treason charges for suspending the constitution.

That the government is not actively pursuing the case is seen as an indication of a change in the government's approach.

Musharraf returned to Pakistan in March after a self-imposed exile to take part in elections but the courts barred him because of his ousting an elected government and abrogating the constitution.

He was arrested in three cases and detained at his Islamabad farmhouse for security reasons following threats from the Taliban.