An open letter

This is an open letter to Prime Minister Imran Khan. We are writing to you as a group of cross-party parliamentarians in the UK. We are concerned about the June 3 judgment of the Supreme Court of Pakistan; the verdict says that the Edwardes College, Peshawar should be run and managed as specified in Para 4 of the Privately Managed Schools and Colleges (Taking Over) Regulations 1972 (Regulation No 118). The SC decision has come despite the fact that the earlier Peshawar High Court decision of 2016 declared the college to be an independent church-run institute. Also, Paras 12 and 12A of the abovementioned Regulation No 118 permit the government to return the schools/colleges to the previous managers. The Edwardes College was established as a private missionary educational institution by the Church Mission Society and had its own financial resources which were created through donations and fees.

The college is a vital Christian institution which has played a big role in educating hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis. We, as parliamentarians in the UK and as friends of Pakistan, hope that your government will take the opportunity offered by the abovementioned Articles 12 and 12A to return the college to the Church. This gesture will be greatly appreciated by all the friends of Pakistan as well as the Christian community in Pakistan and abroad.

Jim Shannon MP, Lord Alton of Liverpool, Marie Rimmer MP, Fiona Bruce MP and Dr Lisa Cameron MP

All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Pakistani Minorities in the UK