SC summons Shaheen Air’s owner as Pakistanis remain stranded in China

LAHORE: Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nisar has ordered Malik Ahsaan Sehbai, the owner of Shaheen Airline, to appear before the court on Tuesday.

A three-judge bench took up a suo moto case hearing of stranded Pakistani passengers at an airport in China and directed Shaheen Air to bring all passengers back by Monday.

Following a conflict over nonpayment of arrears totaling over Rs.1.5 billion by the airline, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) suspended the flight operation, leaving as many as 300 Pakistanis stranded in the Chinese port city of Guangzhou.

On the contrary, the regional director of Shaheen Air apprised the bench that all flights except Saudi Airline were cancelled on July 29 at the airport of Guangzhou, due to which passengers could not come back to Pakistan.

The official also told that only Shaheen Air operates flights from Lahore to Guangzhou.

Dissatisfied with the response from the airline official, the chief justice ordered Shaheen Air to ensure all stuck passengers are fetched back to Pakistan before Monday.

The bench also instructed the CAA to prepare a report on the condition of the plane sent to fetch the passengers from China.

The airline’s international operations — except Haj flights — were suspended several days ago by the CAA owing to the mounting debt.