ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court will take up on May 25 the federal government’s appeal against the Lahore High Court’s (LHC) conditional permission granted to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz president Shehbaz Sharif to travel abroad for medical treatment.

A two-judge bench, headed by Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan, will commence hearing on the interior ministry’s appeal against the May 7 order of the LHC.

On May 18, the interior ministry had instituted an application to seek early hearing of the case in the larger interest of justice. It had pleaded that the petition was an urgent matter and needed fixation before the apex court on an early date as valuable rights of the petitioner were involved in the case.

The petitioner also pleaded that the balance of convenience also lay in its favour.

Ministry says judge was not justified while allowing Shehbaz to go abroad without summoning the record

In the original petition, the interior ministry had pleaded that the single judge in chamber was not justified in law while passing the high court order without summoning the record, report from the concerned departments or authority was necessary for a just and fair decision of the case.

The petition contended that the high court order was passed in violation of law, all cannons of justice and norms of equity and fairness could not be allowed to stand as a precedent.

“It is submitted with profound reluctance and regret that such orders, if allo­wed to remain in field, shall cause severe damage to the impartiality, integrity and reputation of the august institution of judiciary,” pleaded the interior ministry.

The petition argued that no one should be condemned unheard while passing an order, particularly an ex parte mandatory order granting main relief and thereby virtually allowing the entire petition, and therefore the single judge order in chambers was liable to be set aside.

It said that the single judge in chambers of the LHC was not justified to pass ex parte mandatory order without notice to the government and allowing Shahbaz Sharif to travel abroad as he was involved and required in many cases pending before the trial courts.

The respondents in the petition include Shahbaz Sharif, the Federal Investigation Agency and director general immigration and passport through director general interior.

The petition contended that high court did not provide proper opportunity of hearing to the government and did not grant it due time for seeking instructions from the department and authority concerned, especially when the National Accountability Bureau — a necessary party, was not impleaded in the case.

Likewise, the high court judge in his order did not consider that respondent had also sought post-arrest bail earlier on medical grounds, that was not accepted by LHC’s full bench, yet travel was allowed on medical grounds without questioning or examining the veracity of the assertion by him.

The petition pleaded that the single judge in chamber ignored an earlier undertaking in which the respondent had assured the court that his brother and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif would return within four weeks or as and when certified by doctors that he had regained his health and was fit to return back to Pakistan.

Published in Dawn, May 21st, 2021