' MUHAMMAD KHALID MEHMOOD KHAN, J.---The petitioner is the Chief Executive/shareholder of limited company known as Messrs Anmol Textile Mills Limited. The said company raised financial facility from respondent No,3 for running its business against acceptable securities. Respondent No,3 filed a suit for recovery of outstanding finance against the company and petitioner. The said suit is pending disposal before the competent court of law. Respondent No,1 has placed the name of petitioner in Exit Control List on the request of respondent No,3 due to pendency of civil suit.
2. The petitioner has challenged the act of respondent No, 3 for deleting his name from the Exit Control List (ECL).
3. Learned counsel for petitioner submits that petitioner wants to travel abroad in connection with his business promotion and as such he is feeling difficulty to travel abroad. Learned counsel further submits that petitioner has provided sufficient securities to respondent for securing the financial facility and till the decree is passed, petitioner could not be termed as defaulter; the dispute between the parties is contractual dispute, the petitioner is not acting against the interest of State and as such his name could not be placed in Exit Control List.
4. Learned counsel for respondent No,2 submitted that they have forwarded the request of respondent No,3 to Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan for placing name of petitioner in Exit Control List due to default in fulfillment of his financial obligations.
5. Learned counsel for respondent No,3 has opposed the petition and submits that petitioner has misappropriated the pledged goods and F.I.R. Has been registered against him and as such in case he was allowed to travel abroad, he will not return to Pakistan.
6. Heard. Record perused.
7. Learned counsel for petitioner has placed on record order dated 14-10-2010 passed by the High Court in its banking jurisdiction in 'C.O.S. No,44 of 2008, which shows that pledged stock was sold by respondent to petitioner against the payment of Rs,140.0 million under supervision of the,Court and as such it could not be said that petitioner has misappropriated the stock. Further the file of C.O.S. No,44 of 2008 was summoned and it is observed that in plaint not a single word has been mentioned about misappropriation of the stock. It seems that respondents are trying to blackmail the petitioner and respondents Nos.1 and 2 have wrongly entered the name of petitioner in Exit Control List. The said act of respondents is against the fundamental rights of petitioner. The said issue has already been decided by this Court in number of judgments as to Munir ,Ahmad Bhatti v.
Government of Pakistan, Ministry of Interior through Secretary and others (PLD 2010 Lahore 697) and Mian Tahir Jahangir v. Federation of Pakistan through Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Islamabad and another (2008 YLR 1857). As the petitioner is enjoying Constitutional protection for travelling abroad in connection with his business, etc. And as such the petition is allowed and respondents are directed to delete the name of petitioner from the Exit Control List. However, if the respondent bank is of the opinion that he is leaving Pakistan due to registration of criminal case against the petitioner, the respondent bank has the every right to obtain restraining order from the competent court of law.
Constitutional .