Forced deportation faces legal challenge

Farhatullah, others question govt’s mandate to formulate such a policy, seek suo motu

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan Peoples Party former senator Farhatullah Babar and others on Wednesday filed a petition in the Supreme Court, seeking suo motu against the caretaker government’s policies of mass deportation that currently focuses on repatriating “illegal” Afghans back to their country.

Petitioners challenged the caretakers’ mandate to formulate such a policy against “illegal residents and asylum seekers” living in the country for decades. “It is reversal of Pakistan’s 40-year-old policy,” they said, claiming that no provision of law permits such mass deportation without a “robust mechanism” of differentiating between refugees and birthright citizens.

This “coercive deportation”, they claimed, went against the Constitution, which protects the fundamental rights of residents “irrespective of their citizenship status.” The petition pointed out the government’s “failure” to differentiate between the illegal immigrants and birthright citizens that contradicted with Section 4 of the Citizenship Act, 1951.

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The petition contended that the policy was against international conventions and laws.

The petitioners also questioned the legal standing of the formulation of apex committee and its directives regarding deportation.

Commenting on the mandate of the interim government, they claimed that this issue of “illegal” residents had been put before the elected governments who did not repatriate ”4.4 million Afghans.”

They requested the apex court to halt government’s “harassment” of refugees or asylum seekers, claiming that those who were born in Pakistan have claim to birthright citizenship.

The petitioners also included social activists Jibran Nasir, Imaan Zainab Mazari, and former MNA Mohsin Dawar.