Pervez Musharraf (C) is escorted by soldiers as he arrives at an anti-terrorism court in Islamabad on April 20, 2013.
A Pakistani court in Rawalpindi has granted bail to former military ruler, Pervez Musharraf, in a case related to the murder of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.
“General Musharraf’s bail has been confirmed,” said Mohammad Aslam Joya, an anti-terrorism court official on Monday.
Sources say the retired general will remain under house arrest despite the bail order because he also faces charges over the sacking of judges back in 2007.
Musharraf has been under house arrest in his farmhouse on the edge of Islamabad since April 19 on charges of conspiracy to murder Bhutto.
The former military ruler denies the allegations and claims they are politically motivated.
Azhar Chaudhry, the special prosecutor, had opposed bail for Musharraf, saying there was a risk he would leave the country.
However, Musharraf’s lawyer, Ahmed Raza Kasuri, has given assurances that he would not flee.
“He will stay in the country and won’t go abroad. He will stay very much here. Rumors that he will go abroad before Nawaz Sharif takes charge of the prime minister office are false,” Kasuri said.
Musharraf returned from exile in March to stand in last week’s general elections. But, he was barred from running over charges dating back to his time in power.
Musharraf, who assumed power in a bloodless coup in 1999, was forced to step down and leave Pakistan in 2008. Heâ„¢s been living in the UK and the UAE since then.
JR/SS
This article originally appeared on : Press TV