Heckling of Justice Faez Isa in UK: CNICs, passports of around two dozen British Pakistanis restored

LONDON: Pakistan’s interior ministry has restored CNICs and passports of around two dozen British Pakistanis whose Pakistani identity papers were cancelled for allegedly attacking former chief justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa during his visit to London in November last year.

Trusted sources said the names of around two dozen Pakistanis, reportedly belonging to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), have been restored to their normal status and the cancellation process against their identity papers has been dropped, in a decision by the Pakistan government.

In early November last year, the interior ministry ordered the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) to immediately identify the “attackers” via the incident’s footage and initiate legal action against them.

Names of around 23 Pakistani origin protesters were identified, who were placed on the Passport Control List (PCL) and their CNICs (Computerised National Identity Cards) cancelled for allegedly attacking the ex-CJP Isa. A letter was also sent to the British government requesting the extradition of these Pakistanis.

At the time, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi had announced: “Further action will be taken after registering a first information report (FIR) in Pakistan. The government will cancel computerised national identity cards (CNICs) and passports of the attackers.”

It was decided that the government would begin the process of cancelling the citizenship of those “attackers” and the relevant cases would be forwarded to the cabinet but last week it was decided that all action will be dropped.

The PTI’s UK chapter had called for a protest outside the Middle Temple on November 8 against the decision to call ex-CJP Isa to the Bench following his retirement. Close to 80 people attended the protest but that event ended peacefully.

Around 10 activists stayed on who later on tried to stop the car, banged on it, and tried to open the doors to get access to Isa and his wife Sarina — three hours after the main protest had ended.

As Isa’s car — carrying the Pakistan High Commission diplomatic number plate – appeared from the Temple’s exit door at around 10:20pm, the demonstrators made their way to the car, tried to stop it and shouted slogans against the jurist.

The former chief justice became the first Pakistani judge to get elected as a bencher and be invited to the Middle Temple, a prestigious legal institution in the United Kingdom (UK). It may be noted that the Middle Temple is where Isa studied law. His father was also a graduate of the institute.