The Supreme Court on Tuesday referred the case of an Indian citizen, who has applied for Pakistan's nationality, to Ministry of Interior with the directions to decide it within two weeks. The ministry was ordered to pass the speaking order in view of rights of a person who got married to a Pakistani woman and has two daughters from her, and the judgment of Federal Shariat Court regarding the matter. "Where somebody is otherwise entitled then why his case should be treated differently," the bench observed.
A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar heard the appeal of Ministry of Interior against the judgment of Lahore High Court. The bench suspended the direction to deposit Rs 5 million for processing the application of an Indian citizen Hassan Asghar Ali for Pakistani citizenship. The court noted that the Ministry of Interior under Section 10(2) of Citizenship Act, 1951 grants nationality to a foreign female if she marries to Pakistani male.
Attorney General for Pakistan Khalid Jawed, who was issued notice under Order 27 of Supreme Court Rules, 1980 and Salman Aslam Butt, who was appointed as amicus curiae concurred that Asghar should not be deprived of his rights. Indian citizen Syed Hassan Asghar Ali came to Pakistan on August 09, 2003 along with his 11-year-old son Daniyal Asghar and mother Khurshid Bano who later died on October 16, 2005. Since then Asghar has been living in Pakistan by getting his visa extended. In April 2004, he got married with Rukhsana Bibi and has two daughters from this wedlock.
In 2006, he applied for visa but the Passport and Immigration Office, Multan, had denied his application and told him to deposit Rs 5 million for initiating the process on his application for Pakistani nationality. Asghar and his wife challenged that order through a writ petition in Lahore High Court, which ultimately decided in their favour by relying on Section 10(2) Citizenship Act, 1951.