The court orders that the authorities must “decide on the citizen’s application within 10 days, submit a compliance report”
The Islamabad High Court has issued notices to the federal government and other relevant authorities on a petition filed by Aziz Butt, a Pakistani national residing in Cambodia, seeking to have his name removed from the blacklist. The court has ordered all respondents to submit their answers.
Aziz Butt lives in Cambodia with his family. When he recently visited Pakistan, he was unable to return due to travel restrictions imposed on him by the local authorities without informing him of the reasons.
Under Article 199 of the Constitution of Pakistan, he has petitioned the Islamabad High Court (IHC) against blacklisting his name and is awaiting their response.
Article 199 gives the High Courts the necessary jurisdiction to hear travel ban petitions ie. placement on the exit control list (ECL) or passport control list (PCL).
Justice Khadim Hussain Soomro of the IHC heard the case on the petition on Thursday. The petitioner’s lawyer, Abdul Rehman Babar, outlined the case, adding that they had approached the relevant forums “but no response was received”.
“The relevant authorities are neither responding nor implementing the orders,” he stressed.
Justice Soomro noted that the court would “issue directions to the authorities concerned and call for a compliance report.” He further noted that in similar cases, “the directions we have issued so far have been implemented”.
An example from last year includes a petition by Shibli Faraz, a prominent member of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), who was removed from the PCL following a court order, but his name still remained on the ECL due to bureaucratic differences and blockages.
Read: Shibli Faraz removed from travel restrictions list following court ruling
The court summoned the Assistant Attorney General to the dock and ordered him to ensure that a decision is taken on the petitioner’s application within 10 days. The judge ordered that the authorities must “decide the citizen’s application within ten days and submit the compliance report to the deputy registrar”.
With these instructions, the Islamabad High Court has adjourned the hearing for 10 days.
