PESHAWAR, Aug 24: The Peshawar High Court on Tuesday put on notice the federal government and other respondents in a writ petition filed by an Indian woman seeking Pakistani citizenship as she has married her cousin here.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Ijazul Hassan and Justice Jehanzeb Raheem took up for preliminary hearing the petition filed by the Indian woman, Afsina Bibi, and her Pakistani husband Arshid Mahmood.

The woman, hailing from Ahmadabad (India), contracted nikkah with Arshid Mahmood in 1997. Her rukhsati took place on May 14, 2005.

She came to Pakistan on a visit visa which expired on Aug 19.

The woman applied for Pakistani citizenship on Tuesday and has now requested the court to restrain the government from taking any adverse action against her.

Advocate Siddique Haider Qureshi appeared for the petitioners and argued that the woman was legally entitled to get Pakistani citizenship under the Citizenship Act. He argued that as her visa had expired, she might face problem here.

Mr Qureshi requested the court to issue interim injunctions in her favour whereby the federal government be asked not to take any action against her.

The respondents in the petition are federation of Pakistan through secretary foreign affairs, the federal interior secretary and the provincial home secretary.

The bench decided to issue notice to the three respondents. The next date for hearing would be fixed by the concerned high court’s office.

Last year, two other Indian women had filed writ petitions, seeking Pakistani citizenship. They had also married Pakistani men. During the pendency of those petitions they were granted citizenship by the federal interior ministry and their petitions had become infructuous.