PESHAWAR, Sept 18: The Peshawar High Court on Monday put off hearing of a writ petition filed by an Indian couple challenging demand of Rs5 million from them in return of restoring their Pakistani citizenship.

As the deputy attorney general could not turn up during the proceedings, a two-member bench comprising Justice Ijaz Afzal Khan and Justice Fazlur Rehman Khan observed that the petition could not be heard in his absence.

The court had sought comments from the interior division in reply to the petition and directed the DAG to ensure that the comments were filed before the next date.

The couple, Kaniya Lal and Nisha Lal, had renounced their Pakistani nationality in 1999 when they had gone to India and were granted Indian citizenship. However, in 2004, they returned to Pakistan and applied to the interior division for restoration of their Pakistani nationality.

The petition has jointly been filed by the couple. They have challenged a letter of the interior division sent to them by a section officer wherein they were directed to deposit Rs5 million or equivalent amount in foreign currency for getting the Pakistani citizenship.