Islamabad: Faced with an arrest warrant from the Pakistani special court conducting his treason trial, beleaguered former dictator Pervez Musharraf will appear before it for the first time on February 7, a media report said on Tuesday.
Quoting sources close to the 70-year-old Musharraf, a report on the website of Dawn daily said he will appear in court at the next hearing on Friday.
The sources said a joint police team comprising personnel from Islamabad and Rawalpindi has been informed of Musharraf`s decision.
On January 31, the special court issued a bailable arrest warrant for Musharraf and ordered his production on February 7. Last night, Islamabad Police served the warrant at the military hospital where he was admitted on January 2.
Musharraf has skipped all hearings of the special court formed by the government in December last year to try him on charges of high treason for imposing emergency in 2007.
The former army chief is unlikely to be held in custody because the court has said he can get bail against a surety of Rs 25 lakh.
He was admitted to the hospital in Rawalpindi after developing heart problems while being driven to a hearing.
Police were able to serve the warrant only after waiting for two-and-half hours at the Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology last night, media reports said.
Musharraf`s lawyers provided police with details about the surety bonds of Rs 25 lakh.
"The former president personally wrote a note saying he does not believe that the special court has the right to try him. He handed the note to the police," The Express Tribune reported.
Another report in the daily said over Rs 10 crore has been spent on Musharraf`s security in nine months. Over 400 police and paramilitary personnel are guarding him.
The report quoted police sources as saying that the extraordinary security measures had taken a heavy toll on the performance of Islamabad Police, which is facing an acute manpower shortage.
According to the sources, around Rs 1 crore is spent every month to secure Musharraf, who was earlier under house arrest and facing various charges.
For every hearing in cases against Musharraf, irrespective of whether he appears in court, security agencies have to make arrangements costing Rs 1 lakh, the report said.
