ISLAMABAD, 4 August 2007 — Pakistan’s Supreme Court yesterday ordered the release on bail of senior opposition leader Makhdum Javed Hashmi of Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) who was sentenced to 23 years in prison for trying to incite an army mutiny against President Gen. Pervez Musharraf, a defense lawyer and officials said.
The decision to free Hashmi, a close ally of exiled former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, will bolster political opposition to Musharraf, who plans to seek a new presidential term from lawmakers this fall. The military leader has been weakened by his failed attempt to oust the country’s chief justice. He also faces a tide of militant violence and US demands for tougher action against Al-Qaeda.
Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, who was suspended by Musharraf in March but cleared of charges of misconduct last month, headed the three-judge panel that ordered Hashmi’s release.
Hashmi, an archcritic of the president, was convicted in 2004 on charges that rights and opposition groups alleged were politically motivated. He was sentenced by a Sessions Court to 23 years in prison for circulating a letter from some soldiers against Musharraf.
The letter, written on military stationery but unsigned, criticized Musharraf for making Pakistan a key ally of the United States in its war on terror in Afghanistan, and praised Parliament for opposing a US request for Pakistan to send troops to join coalition forces in Iraq.
It also called for a parliamentary debate to examine Musharraf’s October 1999 coup, and demanded an investigation into the Kargil operation earlier that year, when Pakistan and India fought a limited war in the high mountains of the disputed territory of Kashmir. Musharraf was then the military chief of staff.
The government at the time accused Hashmi of using a forged letter. He was arrested around midnight three days after displaying the letter at a news conference. He faced charges including forgery, inciting mutiny and sedition.
Hashmi’s lawyers sought a review of the case from the Supreme Court, where Chaudhry and two other judges yesterday agreed to release him pending the review on bail of 50,000 rupees (about $800).
“The court allowed bail for him,” said Akram Sheikh, Hashmi’s lawyer. More than two dozen jubilant members of Sharif’s party gathered outside the Supreme Court building, shouting support for the exiled leader and demanding, “Go Musharraf, Go!” Another crowd of supporters went to the Kotlakhpat prison in Lahore, hoping to greet Hashmi on his release.
Sardar Zulifquar Khosa, the provincial president of the party, said Hashmi would not be freed yesterday and told the supporters to go home. Hashmi was expected to leave prison today, and return to Islamabad tomorrow, Khosa said.
Sheikh said he was trying to complete paperwork so that Hashmi could be released quickly, probably today.
Mohammed Fayyaz, an official at the prison, said guards were ready to free Hashmi, though “some formalities are yet to be completed. There will be no hurdle from our side,” Fayyaz said.
