PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has sought details from the federal government about the pending cases of Afghan refugees with the UNHCR while hearing a bail petition filed by an Afghan national.
The case was heard by a bench headed by Chief Justice SM Attique Shah.During the proceedings, counsel for the petitioner, Khushnuma Advocate, informed the court that her client, Muhammad Sadiq Amin, is an Afghan citizen who had traveled to Afghanistan in 2014 but returned in 2015 for security threats faced by his family.
She stated that her client’s case is currently pending with the UNHCR; however, he was arrested by police a month ago and is presently in jail. She requested the court to grant bail to her client.
The chief justice directed that details on Afghan nationals should be provided whose cases are under consideration with the UNHCR, including the total number of such cases, and asked for the report to be submitted at the next hearing.
Additional Attorney General Sanaullah informed the court that Pakistan is not a signatory to the 1951 UN Convention relating to refugees.In response, the chief justice remarked that if Pakistan had not signed the convention, why had it hosted Afghan refugees for the past 40 years.
The additional attorney general replied that Pakistan accommodated Afghan refugees on humanitarian and brotherly grounds.The hearing was adjourned until April 20, and the federal government was directed to submit the required report.
