ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has ordered the federal government to remove Sunni Ittehad Council leader Zartaj Gul’s name from the Exit Control List (ECL).
The IHC reviewed the petition to withdraw Zartaj Gul’s name from the ECL and directed the Assistant Attorney General to comply and submit a report within a week. The case was heard by Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri.
“You do not name the terrorists; the members of the assembly are coming to the court,” remarked Justice Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri. “I will call the IG and ask if a political leader takes out a rally, then you put their name on the ECL,” he added.
Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri noted that no cases involving gangs or terrorists had come before him, only cases involving MNAs being placed on the ECL.
The court directed the Assistant Attorney General to submit a report within a week, recalling names from the ECL. Zartaj Gul appeared in the Islamabad High Court, where the prosecution submitted the record of FIRs in which her name was included.
Meanwhile, renowned Pakistani singer Malkoo’s name has been added to the exit control list (ECL), affecting his United Kingdom tour that was set to start on Wednesday.
Malik, who rose to fame after his hit song ‘Prisoner Number 804’, had a series of eight scheduled shows across Britain starting from June 19, with most of the tickets already sold out.
ملکو سے بات ہوئی تھی گزشتہ روز انہوں نے مجھے بتایا کہ میرا نام بھی ای سی ایل میں ڈال دیا گیا ہے ،لہذا عید کے بعد ان کی طرف سے درخواست ہائی کورٹ میں دائر کی جاۓ گی انشاءاللہ نام نکلوایں گے ان کا . https://t.co/mfpU3l5hYd— Naeem Haider Panjutha (@NaeemPanjuthaa) June 16, 2024
The singer was supposed to fly to Britain on Sunday (today), but reports said that he has not been granted permission to travel.
Malkoo’s shows were set to feature renowned artists like Sarah Altaf and Aima Farooq as supporting acts.
His first scheduled show was supposed to take place in High Wycombe on Wednesday, but it remains uncertain whether the event would go ahead as planned.
Meanwhile, the Peshawar High Court has declined to order authorities to remove the name of a private housing scheme’s project director from the Exit Control List (ECL) regarding an alleged fraud case. A bench composed of Justice Sahibzada Asadullah and Justice Wiqar Ahmad dismissed Prof Abdul Hameed Jan’s petition from Professor Model Town-II Peshawar seeking removal from the ECL, noting that grievances of affected individuals are pending with the high court.
The court found the petitioner’s claim of addressing the affected people’s grievances contradicted by records and facts, thus deeming the petition meritless. The National Accountability Bureau Khyber Pakhtunkhwa initiated an inquiry under the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO) into corruption allegations against the petitioner and others concerning the Professor Model Town-II Peshawar housing project, accusing them of deceiving the public.
