PHC Orders POC Decision for Afghan Husband, Grants Limited Deportation Protection

Independently written and published by Shahbaz Shah Legal Journal.

The Peshawar High Court has directed the authorities to process and decide an Afghan husband’s application under the relevant Pakistan Origin Card and naturalisation framework, while granting limited protection against coercive action resulting in deportation of a family member. The protection ends when NADRA finally decides the application or six months after its filing, whichever occurs earlier. (Paragraphs 4–5.)

The judgment was announced on 29 September 2026 in Mst. Marwa Bibi and another v. Federation of Pakistan and others, W.P. No. 13419-P/2026. The division bench comprised Justice Wiqar Ahmad and Justice Farah Jamshed. Justice Farah Jamshed authored the judgment.

The Court required an application to be decided under the applicable law. It did not declare the Afghan husband a Pakistani citizen or direct automatic issuance of a Pakistan Origin Card. That distinction is central to understanding the relief. (Paragraphs 4–6.)

Relevant part of the judgment: protection against deportation

The following is the relevant part of paragraph 5, on page 3. This is an extract from the judgment, not the full judgment:

Meanwhile, in order to safeguard the unity of the family, no coercive action resulting in deportation of any family member shall be taken until the application is finally decided by NADRA or upon expiry of six months from the date of filing of such application, whichever occurs earlier.

Read or download the full three-page judgment copy (PDF). The PDF contains the three supplied photographs in page order. Read paragraph 5 together with the statutory-processing direction in paragraph 4.

Why Marwa Bibi and her husband approached the Court

The petition was filed under Article 199 of the Constitution of Pakistan. Marwa Bibi claimed Pakistani nationality on the strength of her CNIC. The judgment records that she had married petitioner No. 2, Wilayat Khan, an Afghan national. (Paragraphs 1–2.)

According to the petitioners’ account, Wilayat Khan applied for a Pakistan Origin Card on the basis of that marriage, but the authorities did not consider his case. They therefore approached the High Court seeking a declaration of entitlement to a POC or nationality, together with a direction to decide his application. (Paragraphs 1–2.)

Those were the remedies requested. The operative order must be read separately: the Court directed the authorities to process and decide the application and provided time-limited protection for family unity. (Paragraphs 4–6.)

What paragraph 4 requires the authorities to do

The Court referred to directions already issued in similar cases concerning POCs sought on the basis of marriage to Pakistani citizens. It identified Section 11 of the NADRA Ordinance, 2002, read with Rules 4 and 5 of the National Database and Registration Authority (Pakistan Origin Card) Rules, 2002, as the framework for deciding the POC matter. (Paragraph 4.)

The same paragraph addresses naturalisation separately. It says the petitioners must fulfil the statutory requirements under the Naturalization Act, 1926 and the rules made under it. The judgment therefore preserves the requirement to meet the applicable law; marriage alone was not treated as a substitute for that process.

The concluding direction in paragraph 4 states:

The respondents including NADRA on receipt of such application shall process and decide the cases at earliest but not later than six (06) months.

Read paragraph 4 in the supplied judgment copy. This direction requires a decision within the stated period. It does not prescribe that the decision must necessarily approve the application.

Two time limits that should be kept separate

Paragraphs 4 and 5 serve different purposes. The first concerns administrative processing. The second defines the duration of the protection against deportation.

• Paragraph 4 directs processing and a decision at the earliest, and no later than six months on receipt of such an application.
• Paragraph 5 protects against coercive action resulting in deportation until a final NADRA decision or six months from filing, whichever occurs earlier.

The phrase “whichever occurs earlier” matters. If NADRA decides the application before six months have passed, paragraph 5 does not continue that protection until the six-month period ends. Conversely, if the application remains undecided when six months expire from filing, the protection is not expressed as continuing indefinitely.

The judgment does not give a verified application-filing date from which this article can calculate the expiry. Readers should not count six months automatically from 29 September 2026 merely because that is the judgment date. The order ties the protective period to filing of the application. (Paragraph 5.)

Family unity explains the temporary protection

Paragraph 5 expressly gives the reason for the protective direction: safeguarding the unity of the family. Its wording concerns coercive action resulting in deportation of any family member during the defined period.

The direction is therefore connected to the family’s pending application and has an express endpoint. It should not be described as permanent residence, citizenship, or an unlimited restraint on deportation. Nor does the supplied judgment establish the later outcome of Wilayat Khan’s application. (Paragraphs 4–5.)

POC processing and naturalisation remain distinct in the order

The petition used both POC and nationality language in its prayer. The Court’s response referred to the POC provisions and then said that the statutory requirements for naturalisation must also be fulfilled. (Paragraphs 1 and 4.)

The accurate way to report the result is that the authorities were required to consider and decide the matter under the relevant framework. A headline claiming that the Court granted Pakistani citizenship to an Afghan husband would go beyond the operative order.

Likewise, the judgment should not be expanded into a general declaration that every foreign spouse is automatically entitled to the same document. It resolves this petition through directions tied to statutory compliance and a limited period of protection.

What happened to the writ petition

The High Court disposed of the writ petition in paragraph 6 in terms of the preceding directions. The order did not keep the petition pending for six months. The administrative direction and the limited protective direction are the practical results of its disposal.

For anyone considering the order in a similar matter, the relevant records include the application itself, proof of its filing and receipt, the documents relied on to establish the marriage and nationality claim, and any final NADRA decision. Those records are necessary to identify the factual position and the point at which paragraph 5’s protection ends.

Any application of this reasoning to a different family requires attention to that family’s facts and the applicable statutory requirements. This judgment is not a blanket exemption from immigration law for Afghan nationals married to Pakistani citizens.

Case particulars and source

The case is Mst. Marwa Bibi and another v. Federation of Pakistan and others, W.P. No. 13419-P/2026, Peshawar High Court, Peshawar. The hearing date and announcement date shown in the supplied copy are both 29 September 2026. The copy identifies Justice Farah Jamshed as author and the division bench as Justice Wiqar Ahmad and Justice Farah Jamshed. No reporter or neutral citation is shown in it.

• Full three-page judgment copy, compiled from the supplied photographs.
• Peshawar High Court official case-search portal.
• Peshawar High Court official reported-judgments index.

The official portals above are general search routes, not a claim that this particular judgment has been located in their public listings. The analysis is based on the three supplied judgment pages.

For related reading, see our Jalat Khan analysis of bail under the Foreigners Act, which concerns a different legal question, and our constitutional-law articles.

Frequently asked questions

Did the Peshawar High Court grant Pakistani nationality to Wilayat Khan?

No. The Court directed processing and a decision under the relevant statutory framework. It did not itself grant nationality or issue a Pakistan Origin Card. (Paragraph 4.)

How long does the deportation protection last?

Until NADRA finally decides the application or six months expire from the date of filing that application, whichever occurs earlier. The order does not guarantee six months of protection regardless of an earlier decision. (Paragraph 5.)

When must the authorities decide the application?

Paragraph 4 directs the respondents, including NADRA, to process and decide such an application at the earliest and no later than six months on receipt.

Does the judgment protect every Afghan national married to a Pakistani?

It gives directions in the petition brought by Marwa Bibi and Wilayat Khan. It should not be presented as a nationwide exemption for every Afghan national or every mixed-nationality family.

What laws does the Court refer to?

Paragraph 4 refers to Section 11 of the NADRA Ordinance, 2002, Rules 4 and 5 of the Pakistan Origin Card Rules, 2002, and the Naturalization Act, 1926 and rules made under it.

What is the case number, date and bench?

Mst. Marwa Bibi and another v. Federation of Pakistan and others, W.P. No. 13419-P/2026, announced on 29 September 2026. The bench comprised Justice Wiqar Ahmad and Justice Farah Jamshed, who authored the judgment.

Where can I read the judgment?

The article provides a PDF containing all three supplied judgment photographs in page order. Paragraphs 4 and 5 contain the application-processing direction and the temporary protection from deportation.