LAHORE - The Lahore High Court yesterday ordered for submission of details of foreign visits of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and expenditures incurred on these tours.

Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah of the LHC passed the order and adjourned hearing until May 25. Barrister Sayyed Javed Iqbal Jafree filed the petition and submitted that there was no medicine at public hospitals for a common man, the county was sinking in foreign debts but the Prime Minister got his medical treatment abroad on public money.

He said, unfortunately, PM as head of the government could not establish such hospital where he could go for his own medical treatment.

He submitted that on PM treatment abroad the public money was spent. He said that taxpayers’ money had been constantly used by the PM and his family on lavish foreign tours. He also requested that the government should be restraint from media advertisements for the promotion of the prime minister and his party.

In another case, the LHC yesterday ordered for production till Tuesday (today) of permit earlier granted by the Punjab government for exhibition of Pakistani film ‘Maalik. ’ Justice Shams Mehmood Mirza passed the order on petitions filed by Pakistan Tehrek-e-Insaf and opposition leader in Punjab assembly Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed and an advocate Munir Ahmad.

The ministry of information also submitted that it had right to ban exhibition of a film and its action against Maalik was not illegal. However, the court had sought permit earlier issued by the government for exhibition of movie ‘Maalik’. The court would resume hearing today.

AGE MATTER OF STUDENTS: The LHC constituted a division bench to decide a number of petitions challenging a policy of Lahore Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE) that restricts students of below 12 years of age to get them enrolled for Class IX.   A division bench comprising Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh and Justice Shahid Karim is likely to take up the petitions in couple of days.

Dr Akhtar Hussain and other parents filed the petitions against the education board for denying their children registration for class ix for being younger than the age prescribed under Rule 1(A) of Chapter 19 of the Board Calendar.

The petitioners pleaded that the impugned rule is misconceived as based on a misconception of the statutory status of Punjab Education Code (PEC) and misreading of provisions of Punjab Free and Compulsory Education Act 2014.  They requested the court to set aside the illogical policy of the BISE for being an unconstitutional and allow the underage qualified children for registration in class-ix.