LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Wednesday gave the last opportunity to ministry of interior affairs for submitting reply on a petition seeking recovery of Pakistani citizens detained at Bagram Theatre Internment Camp, Afghanistan.

The court was hearing a petition moved by Justice Project Pakistan, a non-profit law firm, for the release and return of 25 Pakistani citizens from the US captivity.

JPP’s counsel Barrister Sarah Belal argued that Pakistani citizens had been detained at Bagram jail without any charge or trial since 2003. She said they were abducted from Pakistan and removed to the infamous US prison in Afghanistan.

She pointed out that the US wanted to wind up Bagram prison before leaving Afghanistan. She said the government should be ordered to make arrangements for repatriation of Pakistanis otherwise they would be shifted to some other jail.

A standing counsel requested the court to allow more time to file reply on behalf of the interior ministry on the subject matter. The court directed the counsel to submit reply within two days.

RUSSIAN WOMAN: The Lahore High Court on Wednesday issued a notice to the passport director general on a plea of a Russian-Japanese woman seeking cancellation of her minor daughter’s and former husband’s passports.

Inna Polikarpova submitted through her counsel that she contracted marriage with Ahmad Naseem Humayun of Gujranwala six years ago in Japan. They were blessed with a daughter, Umaira, she added.

The petitioner said later her husband secretly returned to Pakistan along with the minor daughter. She said police could neither trace her former husband nor recover the minor. She said if passports of her former husband and the daughter were not cancelled he would again escape abroad. She asked the court to order the passport authorities to cancel their passports.

The court adjourned hearing till April 7 and sought reply from the passport DG.