Dar's confessional statement taken under duress in Musharraf's tenure: Asif

ISLAMABAD: Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif made some interesting revelations about former president Musharraf’s tenure, alleging that the former kept him and Ishaq Dar in ‘solitary confinement’ to obtain confessional statement against Nawaz Sharif.

The Defence Minister was talking to host Hamid Mir on Geo News programme ‘Capital Talk’, where he narrated his ordeal.

Khawaja Asif said that Dar’s confessional statement that dates back to 2000 -- a year after Musharraf’s coup—was taken ‘under duress’.    

“He was kept in confinement for 23 months,” said the defence minister.

Khawaja Asif said that in order to obtain a confessional statement against the premier, he and Ishaq Dar were kept confined in Attock Qila for days.

“Ishaq Dar had lost around 30 pounds,” said Khawaja Asif.

He said that Dar was under immense pressure as some employees of the Ittefaq Foundry, in order to save themselves, had placed blame on Dar. 

“I am an eye-witness to this entire matter,” said the defence minister.

He said that both him and Dar were kept in 4x6 feet cells and were rarely taken out of them. Khawaja Asif said that there was always someone taking them out on gunpoint with their hands tied and eyes blindfolded.

The matter of Dar’s statement arose during the hearing of the Panama Case in the Supreme Court.

Dar’s counsel Shahid Hamid, in his arguments had told the SC larger bench that his client had completely rejected the confessional statement regarding money laundering.

Hamid had added that Ishaq Dar had been forced to sign a pre-prepared confessional statement.

 

In 1999, then Army Chief Pervez Musharraf had toppled Nawaz Sharif’s democratically elected government and taken over the country’s charge.