SC to Review Cases on Eviction of Illegal Afghan Residents After Winter Break

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court (SC) referred pleas against the deportation of illegal Afghans from Pakistan to a committee for the formation of a larger bench.

The National Action Plan (NAP) apex committee, led by Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar in an October 3 meeting, set a deadline of October 31 for all foreign nationals living illegally to leave voluntarily or face deportation.

Following the deadline, more than 400,000 illegal Afghans have returned to their homeland via the Torkham and Chaman borders.

A three-member bench, with Justice Sardar Tariq Masood at the helm, addressed the pleas. The SC noted that the powers of the caretaker government under Article 224 of the Constitution of Pakistan had been challenged. According to the Practice and Procedure Act, matters related to the interpretation of the constitution should be heard by a larger bench, the SC stated.

The apex court decided to schedule further hearings on the matter after the winter vacation.

During the last hearing, the SC issued notices to the federation, apex committee, and foreign ministry.