Interior ministry to remove Nawaz's name from ECL after receiving copy of court order

ISLAMABAD: The interior ministry said on Saturday that it would remove former prime minister Nawaz Sharif's name from the Exit Control List after receiving a verified copy of the Lahore High Court's (LHC) order. 

The interior ministry said that it was waiting for the court's order to remove Nawaz's name from the ECL. The ministry also said that in the past names have been removed from the no-fly list on a holiday.

READ MORE: Nawaz Sharif’s name to be removed from ECL for four weeks 

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Saturday permitted to remove former prime minister Nawaz Sharif's name from the Exit Control List without any conditions for a time period of four weeks.

On Friday, the LHC called the plea admissible regarding the removal of former premier Nawaz Sharif’s name from the ECL on a conditional basis — the government had said it would allow a 'one-time permission' provided Nawaz Sharif deposited surety bonds worth Rs7-7.5 billion.

In its decision, the LHC said that in case Nawaz's health doesn't improve then the time-period can be extended, adding that the government officials will be able to contact Nawaz through the Pakistani embassy.

During the hearing today, the LHC presented petitioner Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the federal government’s counsels a proposed draft on the undertaking.

The High Court earlier said that it would create its own draft of Shehbaz’s undertaking guaranteeing the return of his brother — Nawaz Sharif — to Pakistan, after the siblings and the government's counsels could not reach an agreement on the phrasing of the draft and its terms.