Nawaz’s plea seeking bail without condition heard

LAHORE: Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday has conducted hearing on a plea seeking unconditional removal of former Prime Minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif’s name from Exit Control List (ECL). A two-member bench headed by Justice Tariq Abbasi heard the matter. During the proceedings, the plaintiff stated that the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had already granted bail to Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) supremo on medical grounds. However, conditions were placed to exclude Nawaz’s name from ECL, the lawyer told. He further requested the court to unconditionally deduct the name of ex-PM from no-fly list. In November 2019, LHC had ordered to remove Nawaz’s name from ECL and allowed him to travel abroad to get health treatment for four weeks. It may be mentioned that the federal government had set condition for Nawaz Sharif to pay Rs7 billion surety bond if he wanted to travel abroad for medical treatment. The government had also given only one time four-week permission to ailing Sharif to get his medical treatment in London. Nawaz, who was imprisoned after an accountability court found him guilty in the Al Azizia corruption reference, was granted bail by IHC on humanitarian grounds. He also obtained bail in the Chaudhry Sugar Mills case, in which he is a suspect, from the LHC. Meanwhile, Another plea seeking permission for Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz (PML-N) vice president Maryam Nawaz to travel abroad was submitted in Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday. In a petition, the PML-N leader stated that she wants to be with her ailing father Nawaz Sharif who is currently in London for medical treatment. No one else knows medical history of Nawaz Sharif better than me, she added.