ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) declined to grant permission to Deputy Commissioner Islamabad Irfan Nawaz Memon to proceed to Saudi Arabia for performing Umrah along with his family on Friday (today).

An IHC division bench, comprising Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri, took up Memon’s appeal filed against the show-cause notice issued to him by a single-member bench of Justice Babar Sattar.

Justice Sattar issued the show-cause notice to the DC for absenting from the court’s hearing in a contempt of court case and also placed his name on the Exit Control List (ECL).

The DC was also seeking permission to proceed to Saudi Arabia along with his family, and wanted immediate suspension of the order that placed him on the ECL.

However, the bench observed that an intra-court appeal against an interim order was not maintainable.

Justice Jahangiri reminded him that he had already challenged a show-cause notice in the contempt case before the division bench of the IHC and the Supreme Court and his case was dismissed.

The bench observed that the DC concealed the orders of the IHC and the Supreme Court which amounted to misconduct.

His counsel Saad Hashmi requested the court to grant him a temporary permission to perform Umrah, however, the bench was of the view that such a request could be made before the bench who placed him on the ECL.

The court adjourned the hearing till Monday.

On Tuesday, Justice Sattar issued the non-bailable arrest warrants of the DC since he skipped the hearing of a contempt case initiated against him as well as Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Malik Jameel Zafar in connection with the detention orders of PTI leaders Sheharyar Afridi and Shandana Gulzar.

Justice Sattar issued him the show-cause notice for being absent, placed him on the ECL and directed the federal as well as provincial police chiefs to produce him on Wednesday. However, Mr Memon surrendered before the court the following day.

Published in Dawn, February 23rd, 2024