–LHC orders petitioner’s lawyer to submit copy of govt orders in 15 days
LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday dismissed the objection of a petition seeking the removal of Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz and Capt (r) Mohammad Safdar’s names from the Exit Control List (ECL).
While hearing the case, LHC Judge Faisal Zaman Khan, issued a written order and asked the petitioner’s lawyer to submit a copy of the government orders to put the names on the ECL in the next 15 days.
Furthermore, the written order stated that after submitting a copy of the government orders relating to the ECL, the petition — in which the federal government, the interior ministry and others were made a party — should be set for hearing.
Earlier on October 11, the high court office had stated objections to the petition for being non-maintainable.
The petitioner Shahid Iqbal Chohan had argued that the interior ministry had put the names of the Sharifs’on the ECL without issuing a show cause notice to them.
It was further mentioned that according to LHC’s decision, the interior ministry should listen to the Sharifs’ case and position before making the decision to put the names on the ECL. Thus, requested the court to give an order for the removal of names.
In a letter to the interior secretary, the Sharif family members claimed that Article 4, 15 and 25 of the constitution were being violated by placing their names on the list and that they were acquitted by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) after the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) was unable to prove the corruption allegations levelled against them.
The letter concludes that Sharif family members are law-abiding citizens who surrendered themselves before the authorities after an accountability court judge declared them guilty.
Earlier, the Supreme Court issued a notice to Nawaz in a suo motu case related to allotment of 1,800 kanals Auqaf land around Pakpattan shrine to an individual in 1985 in violation of a high court order.
The three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar has also issued a public notice to 8,200 individuals who purchased the land.
In August, the federal cabinet, after being sworn in, had decided to place the names of Nawaz and Maryam on the ECL.