Islamabad, March 18: Pakistan’s ex-military ruler Pervez Musharraf left the country early on Friday morning for medical treatment in Dubai, a day after the government allowed him to go abroad.
“I am a commando and I love my homeland. I will come back in a few weeks or months,” Musharraf was quoted by the Dawn.
Musharraf boarded an Emirates flight bound for Dubai that departed from Karachi airport at 3.55am (0425 IST), a media report said. “He was the last person to be embarked on the plane and then the gate was closed. The retired general appeared relaxed,” the report said.
Musharraf, 72, has been facing a treason trial since 2013 and was barred from leaving the country in 2014 by the government. The order was declared as illegal by the Sindh high court the same year.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the decision of the Sindh high court, rejecting the government’s appeal. But it did not stop the federal government from putting new bars on Musharraf’s foreign tours.
Interior minister Nisar Ali Khan told a press briefing on Thursday that after consultation, the government decided to let Musharraf leave the country for treatment. He said Musharraf’s lawyers had formally asked the government to allow him to undertake foreign travels.
