ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Monday refused the appeal by the interior ministry to retain the name of model Ayyan Ali on the Exit Control List (ECL). The decision also upheld the earlier verdict given by the Sindh High Court (SHC) to remove Ayyan’s name from the ECL.
Media reports said that Chief Justice Saqib Nisar, who headed the bench that heard the appeal, said it seemed as if the government desperately wanted to keep the model in the country.
The lawyer representing the interior ministry argued that the model’s name was added to the ECL at the request of the Punjab Home Department (PHD). He added that this is why, before the SHC gave its verdict, it should have listened to the arguments as to why Ayyan’s name was added to the list.
On Saturday, the interior ministry challenged SHC’s verdict in the Supreme Court.
In a petition received by the SC, the interior ministry maintained that the model’s name was put on the list on PHD’s request and thus it could not be removed by the SHC.
Earlier on Jan 19, the SHC ordered authorities to remove Ayyan’s name from the ECL but later suspended its order for 10 days on the request of the federal government. The federal government had sought time to challenge the SHC’s judgment in the SC.
