' Recounting his achievements in the past career, the petitioner who is an Advocate of High Court, Secretary-General of Pakistan Peoples Party, Former M.N.A., Senator and the Federal Minister who held various portfolios, has the grievance that inclusion of his name in the Exit Control List was unwarranted being without justification. He prays that "the inclusion of the petitioner's name in the Exit Control List and restriction imposed on his travelling abroad by the respondents may kindly be declared to be without lawful authority and of no legal effect". He also seeks a direction for the renewal of his passport, which according to him is to expire within next two months. Through an application (C.M. No,! Of 2003) it is urged by him that the petitioner wants to go to Saudi Arabia for performing Umra and to visit some other countries for personal matters, one time permission to go abroad may be granted to him.
2. The learned counsel for the petitioner contends that despite pendency of the references against him, he had been granted permission in the past for one time travel abroad and had returned back to the country, but despite his application, made in the month of June, 2003 for Umra no permission has been granted as yet. He has supplied instances of persons namely Mr. Khalid Ahmed Khan Kharal and Mr. Mushtaq Ahmed Awan who had been granted such permission by the Federal Government but the petitioner was being discriminated by denying such permission.
Reference has also been made to permission granted by the Court as well, to Mr. Ahmed Mukhtar in the writ petitions filed by him. (Writ Petition No,1340 of 1998 and Writ Petition No,9351 of 2002).
Parawise comments have been submitted by the learned Deputy Attorney-General in Court today, who opposes the deletion of the name of the petitioner from the Exit Control List due to pendency of National Accountability Bureau references against him and that the permission to go abroad, if granted, according to him, would run counter to the order of the Honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan passed in the matter of his bail viz. Muhammad Jehangir Badar v. The State and others PLD 2003 SC 525. It is contended by the learned Deputy Attorney-General that since the case before the Accountability Bureau Court is in progress neither the name of the petitioner should be deleted from the Exit Control List nor he is entitled to permission to travel abroad. According to him in view of the pendency of the reference against him, National Accountability Bureau should have been impleaded as party to the proceedings.
3. Respective contentions of the learned counsel and the learned Deputy Attorney-General have been considered and the parawise comments submitted by the respondents have been perused.
4. Memorandum dated 18-5-2000 placed on record with the parawise comments shows that the name of the petitioner was placed on the Exit Control List under section 2 of Exit from Pakistan (Control) Ordinance, 1981 against whom undisputedly National Accountability Bureau references are pending. The said Ordinance provides for a review/representation to the Federal Government qua any order passed under section 2 of the Ordinance. The petitioner indeed has made such a representation dated 26-6-2003 seeking the deletion of his name from the Exit Control List. He should pursue that remedy invoked by him.
' Insofar as the permission to go to Saudi Arabia for performance of Umra is concerned, he had applied for such a permission vide his application dated 30-6-2003, which has not been responded so far. It is in this context that he is seeking such permission for going to Saudi Arabia in order to perform Umra in the Holy month of Ramzan. Propriety of such a prayer has engaged my attention. It may be observed that despite the pendency of references against him, he was granted permission by the respondent on 13-5-2003 to go abroad for a period of 30 days, which permission statedly was availed by him and he returned accordingly. Such permission was granted by the respondent after the passing of order by the Honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan in the matter of his bail referred to above. That permission granted by the Government itself would furnish answer to the contention of the learned Deputy Attorney-General. There is thus no question of passing of any contradictory order. If the petitioner has such a pious desire to go for Umra in the days, left for the Holy month of Ramzan, he deserves to be granted permission for that purpose subject to undertaking by him to return. There are numerous instances where either the Government itself has granted permissions to persons on the Exit Control List of the Court by making orders subject to certain conditions, (as mentioned in the preceding paragraph). When enquired. The learned counsel for the petitioner has stated that 15 days' would be enough for the performance of Umra. I am, therefore, inclined to grant him one time permission to go abroad i,e, the Holy cities of Mecca and Medina, for a period of 15 days subject to his furnishing bond in the sum of Rs,2,00,000 (two lacs) to the satisfaction of the Deputy Registrar (Judicial) of this Court ensuring and undertaking his return to the Country. The respondent will facilitate the due documentation for this purpose.
' The writ petition as also the abovementioned application is disposed of accordingly.