Pak Army chief ratifies life sentence for serving major over 'misuse' of authority

The Pakistan Army has sentenced to life a serving major-rank officer for "misusing" his authority, the military announced on Tuesday after Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa ratified the decision of a court martial.

The major, who was not named, was tried by a Field General Court Martial, which found the officer guilty of "misusing" his authority, a statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the military said.

Gen. Bajwa got a three-year extension as Pakistan Army chief on Monday.

"Pakistan Army, alive to its institutional accountability system has dismissed the officer from service and sent him to jail for life," the statement said without divulging further details of the case against him.

In May this year, the army chief had ratified the punishment awarded to two senior retired army officers and one civil officer "on the charges of espionage/leakage of sensitive information to foreign agencies prejudice to the national security".

Those convicted and sentenced at the time were retired Lt Gen Javed Iqbal, who was awarded 14-year rigorous imprisonment, retired Brig Raja Rizwan, and Dr Wasim Akram, who according to the ISPR was employed at a 'sensitive organisation'.

Rizwan and Akram were both sentenced to death, Pakistani media reports said.