Maryam seeks court nod to travel abroad for taking care of ailing Nawaz

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) vice president Maryam Nawaz on Saturday moved a petition in the Lahore High Court (LHC) seeking its directives for the government to strike her name off the no-fly list so she can travel abroad to take care of her ailing father Nawaz Sharif.

She through her lawyer Amjad Pervez filed the petition which states she wishes to travel abroad for six weeks.

A division bench, headed by Justice Ali Baqir Najafi, will hear the petition on December 9 (Monday).

The Ministry of Interior, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), and the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chairman are among those cited as respondents in the petition that challenges the government’s move to put her name on the Exit Control List (ECL).

The petition argues that Maryam Nawaz’s name was put on the ECL without affording her an opportunity of fair hearing. The government’s memorandum regarding the ban on her travelling abroad is unlawful and unconstitutional, it submits.

The ex-premier’s daughter stated in the plea that she has been appearing before courts for the past one and a half year.

After her mother’s death, she said she tends to her father who largely relies on her in case of ailment.

Maryam said her father’s health condition is beyond description, due to which she was under a lot of mental stress.

Maryam Nawaz recalled she along with her father had returned to the country leaving her ailing mother in London last year in July to face the prison term awarded to them in the Avenfield corruption reference.

The PML-N leader pleaded with the court to let her travel abroad for six weeks and direct the authorities to return her passport.