Former Pakistani leader Pervez Musharraf’s request to leave the country has been backed by the Sindh High Court.

The Sindh High Court removed Pervez Musharraf’s name from an exit control list on Thursday. The former leader is currently barred from leaving Pakistan.

The government has 15 days to appeal before the order comes into effect.

Pervez Musharraf is currently on trial for treason. He denies the charges and has described the accusations as politically motivated.

Former Pakistani leader Pervez Musharraf is currently on trial for treason (photo Wikipedia)

Pakistan’s military is watching the trial of the former general closely – correspondents say they are concerned over the precedent the trial could set in a country with a history of military rule.

On Thursday, Pervez Musharraf’s lawyer Farogh Naseem said: “The court has allowed our appeal and ordered to strike down Musharraf’s name from the Exit Control List. The order will be executed after 15 days.”

Pervez Musharraf is currently under house arrest. He was admitted to hospital for chest pain in January.

In April, the Interior Ministry turned down Pervez Misharraf’s request to end a travel ban preventing him from leaving the country, to visit his sick mother in Dubai.

Many in Pakistan believe he could flee the country and avoid facing charges, if allowed to travel.

Pervez Musharraf was president from 2001 to 2008. He left the country after losing the 2008 elections, facing possible impeachment.

He dramatically returned to the country in March 2013 to compete in elections, but was barred from standing and now faces a series of court cases.

In addition to five charges of treason, Pervez Musharraf faces criminal charges in connection with the killings of two politicians, and putting dozens of senior judges under house arrest in 2007.

Pervez Musharraf is also on bail in connection with the killing of a cleric in the 2007 Red Mosque siege in Islamabad.

A Pakistani court has charged former military ruler Pervez Musharraf with treason, the first army chief to face such a prosecution.

Pervez Musharraf is accused of unlawfully suspending the constitution and instituting emergency rule in 2007.

He pleaded not guilty and has always claimed that the charges against him are politically motivated. He faces the death penalty if convicted.

President from 2001 to 2008, Pervez Musharraf was one of Pakistan’s longest-serving rulers.

He went into self-imposed exile in 2008, returning to Pakistan in March 2013.

Pervez Musharraf is accused of unlawfully suspending Pakistan’s constitution and instituting emergency rule in 2007

Pervez Musharraf, 70, had hoped to lead his party into elections, but was disqualified from standing and found himself fighting an array of charges relating to his time in power.

He has been in hospital since the beginning of the year and reports say he is being treated for high blood pressure.

The judge read out five charges to Pervez Musharraf.

He pleaded “not guilty” to each of them but also addressed the court with a speech about his services to the country and questioned how he could be called a traitor, declaring that he was a patriot.

“I am being called a traitor, I have been chief of army staff for nine years and I have served this army for 45 years. I have fought two wars and it is <<treason>>?” the AFP news agency quotes him as saying.

“Is this the way to reward someone for being loyal to the country and for loving the country?” Pervez Musharraf asked the court.

He insists that he acted within the constitution when he declared a state of emergency in the country in 2007 and that he did not act alone when taking that decision.

When the former president entered the court he was heavily guarded, but nevertheless appeared relaxed, even waving to the audience.

The court has adjourned and its next task is to decide whether Pervez Musharraf will be allowed to leave the country to visit his sick mother in Dubai.

Pervez Musharraf is currently on the exit control list which restricts certain Pakistani nationals from leaving the country and is under house arrest.

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