PESHAWAR: Peshawar High Court has temporarily restrained law enforcement agencies from deporting a female Afghan cancer patient and three of her family members, seeking response of the government to her plea for stay in Pakistan.
A bench consisting of Justice Syed Arshad Ali and Justice Dr Khurshid Iqbal directed the respondents including federal interior secretary and director general of National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) to file replies within a fortnight to the petition and should also confirm the documents produced by the petitioners regarding treatment of petitioner No.1 (Ms Basaliha) at various hospitals.
The bench fixed Sep 10 for next hearing of the petition jointly filed by the patient and her family members, with the direction not to deport them till further order. The bench also directed to club the petition with other petitions of identical nature wherein Afghan nationals fearing deportation sought relief on humanitarian grounds.
Advocate Mian Zakir Hussain appeared for the petitioners and stated that his clients were Afghan nationals and had no objection to their deportation to Afghanistan, but at present one of them, Ms Basaliha, had been suffering from acute cancer. He said that the said petitioner was receiving treatment at oncology department of Khyber Teaching Hospital, Peshawar.
The counsel said that other petitioners included patient’s son Gul Rahim, his wife, who would attend to the patient, and his six-year-old minor son. He contended that the patient was 60 years of age and after complete medical examination her cancer was diagnosed.
ACTIVIST: The high court has also stopped federal government from arresting or deporting an Afghan social activist, who had also served with the US Special Task Force in Afghanistan, and his family members.
A bench consisting of Justice Mohammad Faheem Wali and Justice Dr Khurshid Iqbal disposed of a petition filed by the activist, Ghulam Ali Rahimi, and his family members, with the direction to federal government to consider their case and determine whether the essential ingredients for grant of asylum, sojourn or temporary stay existed in their favour on the principle of non-refoulment.
“If federal government is satisfied that the necessary requirements for making such an order exist in favour of petitioners, it shall grant asylum, sojourn and temporary stay to the petitioners for such period as may be determined by federal government,” the bench ordered.
“Till the final decision is made by federal government, petitioners shall not be deported to Afghanistan,” it ruled.
Advocate Noroz Khan Khilji appeared for the petitioners and stated that Mr Rahimi had served the former Afghan government as well as the US Special task Force and was actively associated with various humanitarian, social and civil organisations.
He stated that following the overthrow of the former Afghan government by the present regime, the petitioners moved to Pakistan due to serious threats to their lives.
He said that they subsequently applied for visas through the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). He claimed that the petitioners’ case was presently pending before the relevant authorities and was recommended for approval of Australian visas, with all requisite interviews having been conducted.
Published in Dawn, August 17th, 2026
