Islamabad: The special court conducting Pervez Musharraf's treason trial today ordered the setting up of a medical board to assess the former Pakistani dictator's health condition after his lawyer said he should be sent to the US for treatment.
The board comprising doctors of the Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology (AFIC) in Rawalpindi will have to ascertain 70-year-old Musharraf's condition and submit its findings to the court on January 24.
The special court set up to try Musharraf on high treason charges for imposing emergency in 2007 also exempted him from personal appearances till January 23.
“The court has asked the medical board to answer several questions. First is to find out whether Musharraf needs surgery or not. Second is to find out how long it will take for Musharraf to recover completely,” Ahmed Raza Kasuri, a key member of the former president's legal team, told PTI.
The court's ruling came hours after Musharraf's lawyer Anwar Mansoor submitted a letter written by his US-based doctor Arjumand Hashmi, which said the former president should be sent to Paris Regional Medical Center in Texas for treatment.
