'Musharraf can't be tried for anti-terrorism'

A team formed to investigate former military ruler Pervez Musharraf over the sacking and detention of judges during the 2007 emergency had said in a preliminary report that he cannot be tried under the Anti-Terrorism Act, according to a media report on Wednesday. The Islamabad High Court had recently directed that Musharraf should be booked under the anti-terror law for detaining dozens of judges, including Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry. The police subsequently arrested him and charged him under the law. The High Court had issued a non-bailable arrest warrant under section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act and an anti- terrorism court later remanded him in judicial custody for 14 days. During interrogation, Musharraf told the Joint Investigation Team that he fled from the Islamabad High Court after the issuance of the warrant on the advice of his lawyers, The News daily reported. Responding to questions about the detention of judges, Musharraf said he did not issue any order in this regard. Neither the judges complained to him regarding this nor did they register any FIR, Musharraf told investigators. "Two years later a third person, a lawyer, lodged an FIR at a time when I was abroad and I only came to know about it in 2013," Musharraf reportedly told investigators. Asked whether he expects any help from friends inside the country or abroad to influence the trial against him, Musharraf reportedly said he does not have any such expectation and the only thing he wants is a fair trial.