Alleged provision of safe abortion facility: LHC seeks reply from Federal and Punjab secretaries

The Lahore High Court (LHC) Chief Justice Khawaja Muhammad Sharif has sought a reply from federal secretary social welfare and chief secretary Punjab in connection with a petition challenging existence of a UK based NGO in Pakistan allegedly providing safe abortion facility to young girls.
Petitioner Taimoor Akram of Narowal submitted that Marie Stopes International (MSI) was a sexual and reproductive health organisation based at UK and was known as service provider in connection with family planning, safe abortion and post-abortion care in 43 countries world-wide.
He said in Pakistan MSI started its work from Karachi city with a name of Marie Stopes Society (MSS) in 1990. He said at least 90 clinical centres were working in various cities of Pakistan out of which 36 were in Punjab. He pleaded that the MSS was conducting act of abortion in Pakistan against the law and interest of the Muslim nation.
He pointed out that MSS was involved in eradicating of our social and religion norms by providing such illegal and unethical services through two methods namely MSP & MSMP in order to hoodwink public as well as law enforcing agencies. He said the MSS was providing confident aid to young girls for abortion and in this way it was smashing the society.
He prayed to the court to declare the working of the said NGO as illegal and un-Islamic and direct the respondent authorities to take action against it and cancelled its registration. The Chief Justice after hearing his counsel in detail sought reply from the respondents till February 26.