LHC adjourns Hamza's plea against travel ban

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday put off a petition filed by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Hamza Shehbaz seeking to strike his name off the Exit Control List (ECL).

The case couldn’t be heard as Justice Muhammad Farrukh Irfan was on leave.

It is pertinent to mention here that during the previous hearing, the bench had issued a notice to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to submit a reply to the petition of the opposition leader in the Punjab Assembly.

The court granted Hamza permission to travel abroad for 10 days with direction to return back within the stipulated period of time and face rest of the inquiry.

His counsel Azam Nazeer Tarar contended before the court that his client wanted to travel abroad due to his wife’s illness.

In response, the additional attorney general said the court had already made a decision pertaining to judicial jurisdiction.

“Remember what the chief justice of Pakistan said regarding placing a chief minister’s name on the ECL. He stated that placing a CM’s name on the no exit list ruins the country’s reputation worldwide,” Justice Khan remarked. “Keeping the aforementioned precedent in mind, how can a provincial opposition leader’s name be included in the ECL?”

He added that, “Why did an assumption prevail that the opposition leader will not return?” In response, the additional attorney general informed the court that Hamza’s name was not on the ECL but instead his passport was blacklisted.

The counsel contended before the court that his client did not even leave the country during former president Pervez Musharraf’s era. “His uncle was the prime minister, his father was the chief minister but still his name was placed on the list.”