IHC halts deportation of 18 Afghan nationals

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has temporarily stayed the deportation of 18 Afghan nationals and issued notices to the Ministry of Interior, NADRA, the Director General of Immigration, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), and police, seeking their responses.

Chief Justice Justice Sarfaraz Dogar issued the written order in response to a petition filed by the Afghan nationals.

The court noted that the government had canceled the petitioners’ Proof of Registration (PoR) cards on August 4 and directed their return to Afghanistan.

The petitioners’ lawyer argued that they are part of the family of the late Fazlur Rehman, who had applied for Pakistani citizenship in 2008 after fulfilling all legal requirements. No decision on that citizenship application has been taken to date.

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The court’s order also stated that any action against the petitioners is temporarily halted. The parties have been directed to submit their comments ahead of the next hearing, scheduled for September 18.

Earlier this month, the federal government had informed provincial authorities that the regular repatriation and deportation of over 1.3 million Afghan refugees holding PoR cards would begin from September 1.

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This decision follows the Interior Ministry’s July 31 announcement that PoR cardholders, the last group of Afghans legally residing in Pakistan without a visa, would be considered illegal residents once their cards expired on June 30.

On August 4, the ministry sent letters to chief secretaries and inspectors general of all four provinces, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Azad Jammu and Kashmir detailing the implementation of the Illegal Foreigners Return Plan (IFRP).