PESHAWAR: Peshawar High Court has restored a damages suit of a senior journalist against the United States of America over revocation of his ‘valid’ visa without information and the subsequent humiliation, financial loss and physical and mental torture.

A single-member bench of Justice Mohammad Ijaz Khan set aside orders of a civil court of dismissing the suit due to non-prosecution on July 19, 2021, and rejection of the appeal of journalist by an additional district judge on Mar 31, 2022. The bench observed that appellant Mahmood Jan Babar had the right to due process.

The appeal arose after the trial court dismissed Mehmood Jan’s damages suit for non-appearance, citing procedural delay. The appellant stated that his counsel had passed away during the pendency of the case due to cancer, which had resulted in missing court appearances.

The bench observed that the trial court’s decision to dismiss the case merely due to a short delay was a denial of the appellant’s constitutional right to fair trial and due process, as enshrined in Article 10-A of the Constitution of Pakistan.

Justice Khan emphasised that courts must look beyond procedural technicalities and adopt a dynamic approach to ensure substantive justice.

“The due process of law also means that no party to a dispute should be deprived of proving their case in accordance with legal requirements,” the judgement noted. While allowing the plea, the bench restored the original suit and directed the trial court to resume proceedings from the stage at which the case was dismissed.

The bench instructed both the parties to appear before the trial court on June 23.

It is pertinent to mention that the appellant has claimed damages to the tune of $20 million. The defendants in the suit are United States’ embassy in Pakistan, Turkish Airlines and Pakistani immigration authorities.

The plaintiff has held the defendants responsible for breaching their respective duties and obligations. He stated that he was a senior journalist with 25-year experience and the US embassy issued in Aug 2016 a five-year valid professional Visa ‘I’ Type to him.

He stated that he had already covered the US presidential elections in the past and he had planned to visit the US to provide his readers and viewers with the firsthand information on Nov 3, 2020 during US elections.

He said that after online verification and confirmation of his visa status, Turkish Airlines had issued him a ticket at a cost of $877.55 for the connected flight TK711 Turkish Airlines, A330-300, scheduled for Oct 25, 2020, from Islamabad Airport to Istanbul for onward journey to New York, the USA.

He stated that after six-hour journey, he reached Istanbul, where he was made to wait for around seven hours to board the next connecting flight. He, however, said the airlines and Turkish immigration in an offensive and assaulting manner stopped him from boarding the flight for New York and forced him to return to Islamabad in an ‘undignified and insulting manner’.

On his return, he was informed by the airlines that the US embassy had revoked his visa.

Published in Dawn, June 13th, 2025