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Plane hijack case Defence charges Gen Musharraf of high treason

WIRASAT HUSSNAIN

KARACHI: The defence counsel in the October 12 plane conspiracy case said on Friday that Gen. Pervez Musharraf and other army officers had committed high treason which was why "they did not submit themselves to cross-examination."

Leading lawyer from Lahore and defence counsel of the main accused, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, and six others, Khawaja Sultan, was still presenting his final arguments at the Anti Terrorism Court presided over by Judge Rehmat Hussain Jaffery when the hearing was adjourned till Saturday. All the accused were present in the court.

He said, "In the FIR apart from alleging various offences, it is also alleged that accused have committed high treason. This fact is admitted by SI Ch. Mohammad Zubair and he says he knows what this offence is."

Reading from Article 6 of the Constitution, Sultan said that the accused had not committed any such act. "The Article says any person who abrogates or attempts or conspires to abrogate, subverts or attempts or conspires to subvert the Constitution by use of force or show of force or by other unconstitutional means shall be guilty of high treason."

Khawaja Sultan said, "Now I realise Gen. Pervez Musharraf and other army officers did not appear as witnesses in this case. Why did they not submit themselves for cross examination?"

He pointed out what he called a number of ambiguities, inaccuracies and points of contradictions in the first information report (FIR), statement of the approver, Aminnullah Chaudhry, statements of witnesses, timings of issuing orders for the refusal of landing to PK-805, its diversion to other destinations and fuel availability in the PK-805.

Sultan said that the FIR was registered after 28 days of the occurrence of the incident which suggested that the FIR was registered after considerable deliberations, amendments and changes in the alleged sequence of events.

He said it needed to be explained why no report was lodged for 28 days. "It is strange that none of the aggrieved persons travelling by PK-805 deemed it necessary to lodge report even next day or even third day or after a week or thereafter. Up till now not a single traveller of the PK-805 has lodged any report or appeared before any authority to lodge a report."

Sultan said, " At the time of reporting, hijacking was not one of the acts in the schedule of Anti Terrorism Act. At that time Section 20 of the AT Act has no applicability under Section 402-B of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC). This is an after-thought."

He said the FIR was lodged after deliberations and after examination of 150 people of various agencies. "In such circumstances we will expect you to examine the delayed lodging of the FIR."

Sultan said, that the complainant had already admitted that he was ordered from the top to register the FIR. "I was advised from the top to become a complainant and write the FIR," Kiayni had accepted in his statement.

The defence counsel said Shahbaz Sharif, Saifur Rehman, Saeed Mehdi were not mentioned, in any context, in the FIR. "However, witnesses are produced to implicate Shahbaz Sharif, Saifur Rehman, and Saeed Mehdi. Lt. Col. Kiayni could have included their names in the report."

He said Lt. Col. Kiayni had already admitted that he was not aware of the fact that the airport was closed till Gen. Usmani arrived. He had gone there to make arrangement to receive Gen. Pervez Musharraf coming from Colombo.

Sultan said the report that was converted into an FIR was written by a person who was not an eye witness. Those who were eye witness such as Lt. Gen. Usmani, Brig. Tariq Ali, Brig. Naveed Naser were there. They should have lodged the FIR. "What has stopped them from coming to witness box?"

Sultan said that the scheduled time of arrival of PK-805 was 6:55 p.m. whereas, orders for its landing at Karachi airport were given at 6:15 p.m. "This shows that there was enough fuel for 40 minutes flight. This shows that there was no shortage of fuel or fear of any accident as is alleged by the prosecution."

He said considerable evidence had been destroyed by not protecting the black box and the video recording inside the cockpit. These things were required to be taken into custody. Had the black box been there, it would have changed the very nature of the case, he said. "I say certainly these are not blank. Who has certified these boxes as blank? Not only these should have been taken into custody and preserved and produced in the court but the people who took out these boxes and in whose custody the boxes are, have not been produced in the court."

He referred to transcripts prepared from the spools and said spools were taken into custody by someone. "These spools must have been kept in safe custody by some responsible person. "Who prepared these transcripts? We do not Know and that shows why that person was not produced in the court."

Sultan said telephone operator Asif had stated that there was only one contact between Nawaz Sharif and DG CAA, whereas, the DG in his statement had claimed that he had contacted the prime minister three times. "Not only this but there are many contradictions in Aminnullah's statement." The statement showed that Aminnullah recorded his statement under duress and after torture.

Sultan said an approver is to be regarded on moral and legal principles. He is one who purchases his freedom at the cost of others. "Sir, as a rule of prudence it is dangerous to act on the testimony of one who is a self-confessed criminal having betrayed his own friends under the temptation of saving his own life."

Aminullah was taken into custody on Oct. 13, 1999, and kept under house arrest for one month. During this period he did not apply for pardon. "I mean to say he did not confess," Sultan added. "On Oct. 24 1999, he was produced before a board of inquiry and made a statement which was retained. He was recalled on 9th Nov. 1999. What was the statement we do not know. What was the original statement, we do not know. But what was produced subsequently was tampered with. His statements were not recorded."

Sultan further said, "It has already been decided to turn him into an approver. Any variance in his version would have caused harm to the prosecution."

He said Aminnullah had said that he was under mental torture, stress and needed medical aid."He made an application to the jail superintendent on Nov. 3, 1999, at 10:30 a.m., reached DC office at 1:30 p.m. and the pardon was granted at 2:30 p.m."

He had spoken under torture and duress. "There is positive proof of torture," Sultan said.PPI adds: Sultan said it was confirmed by Commander Zahid Mehmood, Protocol Officer of PM House in his statement recorded before this court, saying that Prime Minister was accompanied by Saeed Mehdi and Saifur Rehman, when he informed him about flight fuel position and Nawaz Sharif enquired as to why the plane was not being landed at Karachi or Nawabshah for refueling.Sultan said that Nawaz Sharif had issued instructions to land the plane at Karachi or Nawabshah Airport for refueling and to be sent back to Sharjah.Sultan said that police did not record Aminullah's statement as accused when he admitted his crime. It was duty of the police to record his statement but it was done due to ulterior motives, he further submitted.He said DG CAA had moved an application before the court of ATC that his medical check up may be conducted by Psychiatrist as he was being mentally tortured during remand. On November 19, 1999 the court ordered that accused may be examined and issued directives to the police for submitting report as the accused was complaining of mental disturbance.He said that approver during his cross examination had said that Prime Minister did not order him to divert the plane or for closing of Karachi and Nawabshah airports. The airports were closed on his directives to compliance of the order of PM and this was the procedure of closing the airports.Sultan said Major General Iftekhar had prior knowledge that Prime Minister had removed the Chief of Army Staff General Pervez Musharraf, but he reached Airport with the troops.Reading from judgements of the apex court, he said the FIR was lodged after 28 days at Airport Police Station Karachi on November 10, 1999, therefore the prosecution had destroyed this case itself as it was mentioned in the verdict of the apex courts that "delay in lodging FIR is cause of doubt.He said prosecution side has not produced fuel endurance report of the flight PK-805, while a messenger of PIA later submitted it.He said Raja Qureshi Chief Prosecutor did not ask about fuel position from prosecution witnesses, while Shahnawaz Dara, Director Flight Operation of PIA was cross examined by him he had tried to submit this report, but he was refused. He said prosecution did not ask about fuel position from Sarwat Hussain Pilot of flight PK-805, he added.He further said how it is possible that prosecution witness Mohammad Asif, who was a telephone operator of PM House, can remember telephone's calls of Prime Minister. He said when Asif was asked to give details on the next date, he replied that he has to confirm it through log-book of PM house's telephone exchange. He said it means prosecution tutored prosecution witnesses in this case.Khawaja Sultan further submitted that prosecution also withheld log-book of fire station of Karachi Airport, of which vehicles were used in closing runway. He said through this log book, we can have the right time of closing runway.About black boxes, he said prosecution misguided the administrative judge of ATC, saying these boxes were empty and there was no conversation. The black box has 30 minutes conversations of Air Traffic Control Tower and flight PK-805. He said he had doubt, that relevant portion of spools had been erased and dubbing of sound was made in it. The original spools were not produced before this court. There are 32 channels in ATC tower, but the prosecution prepared transcription of 18 pages only, he added.He further submitted that prosecution witness Nazeer, who produced these documents before this court submitted that he does not know when such black boxes were removed from the aircraft.