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       KARACHI: An engineer approached the Sindh High Court against a private airline and others for wrongly flying him to Saudi Arabia instead of Karachi from Lahore airport earlier this month.

       Filing a plea before the SHC, petitioner Malik Shahzain Ahmed sought compensation and an inquiry into the incident.

       He cited the ministry of aviation, Civil Aviation Authority, Airport Security Force, Federal Investigation Agency and AirSial as respondents, and sought directive for effective implementation of mandatory standard operating procedures (SOPs) and documentation procedures.

       The petitioner submitted that he is a resident of Korangi, Karachi, and frequently travels within the country for work-related assignments as he is a professional civil engineer.

       Seeks compensation for financial and mental distress caused by airline’s negligence; urges high court to order implementation of SOPs

       He stated that on July 7, he had purchased a ticket of AirSial to travel from Lahore to Karachi, but due to alleged gross negligence and procedural failure of the airline, he was “wrongfully and unlawfully boarded on an international flight of the same airline to Jeddah despite lacking valid passport, visa and international travel clearance”.

       The petitioner also submitted that such a reckless conduct of the private airline resulted in his prolonged detention and interrogations at the Jeddah Airport and eventually he was deported back to Lahore by the Saudi immigration authorities without any assistance or representation of the respondent airline.

       He further maintained that after returning to Lahore, he was again compelled to purchase a new ticket to reach Karachi.

       He said he sent a formal legal notice to the airline for legal intimation and initiation of appropriate action, but no response had been received so far. He alleged that the airline has failed to offer any apology, remedy, or compensation and instead attempted to suppress the incident and such action was amount to gross violation of his fundamental rights as guaranteed in the Constitution.

       The counsel for petitioner, Nawaz Dahri, submitted that besides violation of constitutional provisions, such an act has also caused immense mental distress, financial loss and reputational damage to him as well as exposing him to criminal liability abroad.

       He also argued that the regulatory authorities have also failed to perform their statutory duties in order to prevent such gross misconduct and their inaction has caused violations.

       The lawyer maintained that actions of respondents have also violated various laws and regulations including Rules 272 and 273 the Civil Aviation Rules 1997 requiring passengers’ verification, the Pakistan Immigration Ordinance 1979, barring international travel without valid documents and the Montreal Convention 1999 and International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Annex 9 binding the air carrier to ensure secure and lawful travel procedures.

       He further submitted that the petitioner was also facing threats and intimidation not to pursue the matter in question publically and legally while his client was subjected to unlawful detention, loss of dignity, deprivation of liberty and financial injury.

       The counsel argued that the conduct of the private airline has posed a serious threat to the aviation safety standards and inaction on the part of aviation authorities has undermined public confidence in aviation institutions.

       He also contended that no alternative remedy was available with the petitioner but to invoke the constitutional jurisdiction of the SHC primarily to safeguard his fundamental rights.

       The lawyer further maintained that the petitioner had been able to demonstrate infringement of fundamental rights, meriting the exercise to move the SHC.

       The petitioner pleaded for a full transparent inquiry into the incident and to fix responsibility upon delinquent officials or persons and sought compensation for damages.

       He also sought directives for the respondents to suspend the license of the airline and effective implementation of mandatory SOPs and documentation procedures.

       Published in Dawn, July 16th, 2025