Pakistan’s former president Pervez Musharraf passed away in Dubai on Sunday at the age of 79 due to a prolonged illness. Musharraf, who was admitted to a hospital in Dubai, was shifted to the Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology (AFIC) in Rawalpindi earlier.
Musharraf, who was in Dubai since March 2016, was undergoing treatment for amyloidosis. It is a rare disease that occurs when an abnormal protein, called amyloid, builds up in your organs and interferes with their normal function.
On June 10, his family issued a statement on Twitter and said that the former army chief is at a stage where “recovery is not possible and organs are malfunctioning”. “He is not on the ventilator. Has been hospitalized for the last 3 weeks due to a complication of his ailment (Amyloidosis). Going through a difficult stage where recovery is not possible and organs are malfunctioning. Pray for ease in his daily living,” the family said.
Musharraf was born on August 11, 1943, in Delhi, British India. He got his commission from the Pakistan Military Academy Kakul on April 19, 1961. Upon getting his commission, he joined the special services group.
The military ruler also took part in the 1965 and 1971 wars. He was promoted to the rank of general in 1998 and took over as the chief of army staff (COAS).
A year later on October 12, 1999, Gen (retd) Musharraf usurped power in a coup d’etat.
Musharraf remained the longest-serving president of Pakistan as he took after taking over the country’s reins. He was elected as the president through a referendum in 2002 and remained in office till 2008.
During his tenure, the military leader accepted the US proposal for Pakistan to become a frontline ally after the 9/11 incident.
Later in 2004, he was elected as a president in uniform for five years via the 17th Amendment in the Constitution of Pakistan.
Musharraf is also known for anti-constitutional measures to depose the judges of the Supreme Court in November 2007, which marked the beginning of the Lawyers’ Movement — also known as the Movement for the Restoration of Judiciary.
Following a movement led by the political parties of Pakistan, Musharraf resigned as the president on August 18, 2008.
The former military ruler was sentenced to death by a special court on December 17, 2019, under Article 6 of the Constitution. A case of high treason was filed against him during Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) tenure.
Musharraf appeared before the court on March 31, 2016, when he was indicted for the charges.
Later, he flew out of the country due to his illness.
Musharraf, 78, was facing treason charges for suspending the Constitution in 2007 over the imposition of an extra-constitutional emergency, a punishable offense for which he was indicted in 2014.
Musharraf, who ruled Pakistan from 1999 to 2008, was declared a fugitive in the Benazir Bhutto murder case and Red Mosque cleric killing case.
