Name of same-sex couple’s ‘husband’ on ECL

RAWALPINDI:

The Lahore High Court (LHC) Rawalpindi bench Friday ordered the interior ministry to place the name of Akash Ali alias Asma Bibi on the Exit Control List (ECL).

During Friday’s hearing of the same-sex couple marriage case, the court heard that the suspect in the case could not be located even though the court at its last hearing issued non-bailable arrest warrants for.

In a written order on Friday, it stated, “Court is left with no option but to draw inference that he/she is intentionally avoiding to submit himself/herself for gender determination test.” The Rawalpindi RPO and Lahore CCPO were directed to apprehend Akash.

Justice Chaudary Abdul Aziz further ordered NADRA to block the suspect’s CNIC.

Meanwhile, the minor whom Ali Akash claimed to had married, appeared before the court and said she was being threatened. Moreover, she neither wanted to go with her supposed husband nor back to her family. At this, the court directed to send her to a shelter.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 8^th, 2020.