Benazir Bhutto murder case: SC forms 5-member larger bench

KHUDAYAR MOHLA

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Tuesday decided to constitute a five-member larger bench to hear the Benazir Bhutto murder case. The hearing of the case is likely to begin next week.

Advocate Chaudhry Aslam, who performed duties as Protocol Officer of twice-elected prime minister of Pakistan has moved the Supreme Court. He has urged the apex court to issue directions to the concerned authorities to register another FIR in the murder case of Benazir Bhutto.

 It is worth mentioning that the court had also issued notices to former President Pervez Musharraf, Deputy Prime Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, Advisor to the PM on Interior Affairs Senator Rehman Malik, Senator Babar Awan and other important figures including top armed forces officials in the same case.

 Through their counsel, the respondents in the case denied any involvement in the murder plan and held out assurance to the court of cooperation in transparent investigations. But the court observed that for a fair inquiry it was necessary that suspects including Rehman Malik and Pervez Elahi should step down from government positions. Otherwise, it won’t be possible for an ASI-level police officer to investigate such a high-profile case. 

A three-member bench led by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry was hearing the case. It noted that a second FIR was required to be registered as the first FIR did not include the names of some of the key suspects named by Bhutto herself before her assassination.