Amendment to ECL Ordinance: Senate body takes up bill today

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Committee on Interior, in its Monday (today)’s meeting, will take up a bill to amend the Exit Control List, Ordinance. Former Senate Chairman Mian Raza Rabbani had introduced the Private Member’s Bill namely, “The Exit from Pakistan (Control) (Amendment), Bill, 2018,” in November in the Senate.

According to the Bill, it seeks to amend sections 2 and 3 of the Exit from Pakistan (Control), Ordinance, 1981. The bill provides in sub-section 2 of Section 2 that before making an order of placing a person on the control list, the federal government shall specify the grounds on which the order is proposed to be made and shall communicate such grounds within 24 hours of the order to the person or class of person prohibited. Sub-section 3 of the Section 3 in the Bill states that the federal government shall decide the representation within 15 days, failing which the order made shall lapse. The provisions of the Exit from Pakistan (Control) Ordinance, 1981, are in conflict with the fundamental rights conferred by the Constitution. The proposed amendments bring in harmony the provisions of the ordinance with the Constitution and are based on observations of the Superior Courts in several cases.