PHC stops police from action against foreign company

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Tuesday stopped the police from vacating office of foreigner-owned company registered in Pakistan

A two-member bench comprising Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim and Justice Waqar Ahmad heard a writ petition filed by GA Friends Private Limited, a company exporting pink salt from Pakistan. The partners of the company are US and Korean citizens respectively.

The company had challenged letters issued by the Interior Ministry, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Home and Tribal Affairs Department and local police, wherein all assets of the company including their bank accounts were blocked and they were asked by local police to vacate the premises within 3 days.

Advocate Nauman Muhib Kakakhel appearing on behalf of the petitioners argued that besides the company, its partners had applied for registration of an NGO. He said the Government of Pakistan and Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had ordered them through impugned letters to abstain from doing any charitable work. He said the government had taken the action against the company, wherein the local police were ordered to vacate its premises.

The counsel argued that lawful business of the company was stopped with no plausible justification which was unconstitutional, illegal, without jurisdiction and lawful authority and they were not provided opportunity of hearing, which was mandatory under the law.

The bench, after hearing the arguments of the counsel for petitioner, suspended the notice/ letter by the police till final decision of the case and sought comments from federal and provincial governments.