LAHORE: Lahore High Court (LHC) has restrained Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali from presiding over the meetings of Nadra Authority Board until further notice. The court has also stopped Nadra Authority Board deputy chairman Muzaffar Ali Khan, members of the board Tariq Akbar and Tariq Mehmood from performing their duties. Petition filed by advocate Owaisur Rehman came up for hearing before a single bench of LHC consisting of Chief Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah on Tuesday. The petitioner alleged that the interior minister has no authorisation to preside over the board as Nadra is an independent institution and its ordinance does not allow the minister to chair the meetings. According to a media report, Rehman went on to claim that the interior minister was using Nadra for ‘political purposes’ and to influence the authority by chairing its meetings. The petitioner said appointments were being made in violation of regulations and without being advertised. LHC Chief Justice Mansoor Ali Shah remarked that the government’s counsel should advise the government about letting the institutions run independently and emphasised that no compromise will be made on the freedom of the institutions. LHC adjourned the hearing of the case for 10 days.