Islamabad High Court Declares Passport Control List Restrictions Illegal Without Due Process

Islamabad: In a significant ruling, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has declared that placing citizens on the Passport Control List (PCL) without legal authority and due process is unlawful, reinforcing that travel restrictions cannot be imposed arbitrarily.

Justice Muhammad Azam Khan issued a detailed five-page judgment in the case of citizen Zain Ateeq, whose name was added to the PCL after he was deported from Türkiye in July 2022.

The court ordered the authorities to remove his name from the Passport Control List, observing that no competent authority had formally decided to keep him on the list. It also noted that there was no evidence of any criminal conviction or pending criminal case against him in either Pakistan or Türkiye.

According to the judgment, a person deported for illegal entry or any other prohibited act cannot be kept on the PCL indefinitely without proper legal approval. The court further observed that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had recommended removing Zain Ateeq’s name after more than two years, but the Passport Authority dismissed the request without sufficient justification.

Referring to the Shireen Mazari case, the court reiterated that travel restrictions may only be imposed through lawful authority and the prescribed legal procedure. It held that the authorities failed to meet these legal requirements in the present case.

The IHC concluded that, in the absence of any pending criminal proceedings, conviction, or other valid legal grounds, there was no justification for continuing the travel restriction against the petitioner.