ISLAMABAD: A local court of Islamabad on Saturday took up the petition filed by former president General (retired) Pervez Musharraf seeking his post-arrest bail in the Ghazi Abdul Rasheed murder case.

Ghazi Rasheed was the deputy Khateeb (cleric) of Lal Masjid and was killed in the 2007 operation at the mosque.

Earlier on July 12 this year, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had ordered the Aabpara police to register a murder case against Mr Musharraf while hearing a petition filed by Haroon Rasheed, Ghazi Rasheed’s son.

Haroon Rasheed had alleged that Mr Musharraf had issued the orders to conduct the 2007 operation in which his (Haroon’s) father and grandmother were killed. However, instead of complying with the court’s order, the police had sought the opinion of the law ministry.

Therefore, on September 2, the high court summoned the SHO of Aabpara police station, Inspector Qasim Niazi, and ordered him to register the murder case in the court premises.

In the bail petition, Mr Musharraf’s counsel Advocate Ilyas Siddiqui maintained before the additional sessions judge Wajid Ali that the former president had no role in the 2007 operation.

He said the district administration had requested the military operation after exploring all other options for a peaceful settlement during the Lal Masjid standoff.

According to Mr Siddiqui, the joint investigation team constituted to probe the murder case found no evidence against Mr Musharraf, adding that the former president should not be kept behind bar for mere allegations.

On the other hand, Tariq Asad, the counsel of Haroon Rasheed, submitted a paper of attorney (wakalatnama) in court, and requested the court to adjourn the matter for a short period as he wanted to prepare his arguments.

Subsequently, the hearing of the matter was adjourned till October 23.