ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court on Monday warned the directorate general of Immigration and Passports that contempt proceedings would be initiated if its orders to remove citizens’ names from the Passport Control List (PCL) were not implemented without further delay.

Justice Mohammad Azam Khan, while hearing contempt petitions filed by Afnan Khan, Khurram Shahzad and Hadi Hussain, expressed serious concern over the failure of the authorities concerned to implement judicial orders despite clear directions to remove the petitioners’ names from the PCL.

Assistant Attorney General Raja Zamiruddin and counsel for the petitioners appeared before the court.

The petitioners’ counsel informed the court that despite its orders, the names of the petitioners continued to appear on the PCL, leaving them with no option but to approach the court through contempt proceedings.

Justice Khan directed the Director General of Immigration and Passports Mohammad Ali Randhawa to appear before the court in person.

Later, the DG appeared before Justice Khan who asked him whether he had ever sought the list concerning the petitioners.

The court was informed that a large number of contempt petitions concerning non-implementation of its orders were pending.

The counsel told the court that around 16 contempt petitions were pending before Justice Khan alone, while more than 100 similar petitions were pending before the IHC.

The counsel added that the Ministry of Interior had constituted a committee to examine cases relating to the PCL.

Justice Khan questioned the legal basis for such a committee and asked whether there was any law authorising it to sit in judgement over an order passed by the high court.

The counsel explained that the committee’s role was to determine whether a person’s name should be removed from the PCL.

The judge, however, made it clear that an administrative committee could not scrutinise or sit in appeal over a judicial order.

“You cannot say that the court’s decision will be scrutinised by the committee,” Justice Khan observed.

The counsel submitted that cases received from the IHC had been placed before the committee and that it had decided around 346 cases. He added that the minutes of the committee meeting were still awaited.

The lawyer representing the directorate general of Immigration and Passports sought two days’ time from the court, submitting that the order concerning Afnan Khan had already been implemented.

The petitioners’ counsel disputed the assertion and questioned the appearance of private counsel on behalf of a government institution when a state counsel was already present.

He argued that the court had ordered immediate removal of the names from the PCL, but instead of implementing the orders the matter had been subjected to what he termed a bureaucratic shuffle, amounting to a mockery of the court’s directions.

The court adjourned the hearing until the next week.

Published in Dawn, September 8th, 2026