12,000 Afghans caught with fake passports
The committee, which met with its chairman Faisal Saleem in the chair, deferred a briefing on the law and order situation in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) as the provincial home secretary and the inspector general (IG) of police did not attend the meeting.
At the onset of the meeting, the participants offered Fateha for the departed soul of the late senator Taj Haider. While, taking up the agenda items, the participants showed reservations over the absence of the K-P officials. The chair postponed the briefing until the next meeting.
Director General Passports Mustafa Jamal Qazi informed the meeting that 12,000 people reached Saudi Arabia on fake Pakistani passports. Of them, 3,000 had photo-swapped passports, while 6,000 passports were issued by tampering with the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) data.
"Most of the people who travelled on these fake documents were deported to Afghanistan. None of them is now in Pakistan, Qazi told the committee. He added that action had been taken against several NADRA and Passport Department officials, involved in the fake passport case.
When a committee member asked whether action was taken any officers or just low-ranking officials were punished, the Passports DG replied that 35 assistant directors were also included among those people who faced the action.
The Passport DG also raised the issue of the financial problems of his department. He said that they earn Rs50 billion annually for the government, yet they had make rounds of the government offices to ask for the budget.
Meanwhile, the issue of vehicles with tinted windows was also taken up in the meeting. The Excise Department Director, Muhammad Bilal, told the committee that since August, several arrests were made and Rs33 million was imposed in fines on the vehicles with tinted windows.
The committee members raised the question under which law action was being taken against such vehicles. On that an Interior Ministry officials told the participants that there was no specific law on this issue. The chair proposed to the department concerned to set a fee for this purpose.
Also, the committee expressed serious concern over the illegal activities in the guesthouses of Islamabad. The chair revealed that many guesthouses in the federal capital become shisha cafes, bars and drug dens.
The Islamabad IG assured the committee of taking action against illegal guesthouses and drug dealers. The chair emphasised a zero tolerance policy on drugs. He sought a list of all guesthouses in Islamabad and a complete report on the actions taken against them.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
6 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Islamabad, Warsaw set to deepen ties across key sectors
Additional Foreign Secretary (Europe) Ambassador Muhammad Ayub meets Secretary of State at the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs Władysław Teofil Bartoszewski during the 9th Round of Bilateral Political Consultations in Warsaw on July 4, 2025. Photo courtesy: X Listen to article Pakistan and Poland have agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation through high-level visits, parliamentary exchanges, and sustained dialogue, as the two countries seek to broaden engagement across multiple sectors. The understanding was reached during the 9th Round of Bilateral Political Consultations (BPC) held in Warsaw on July 4. Additional Foreign Secretary (Europe) Ambassador Muhammad Ayub led the Pakistani delegation, while Poland's Secretary of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Władysław Teofil Bartoszewski, headed the Polish side. The two sides reviewed the full spectrum of bilateral relations and reaffirmed their commitment to boosting collaboration in trade, investment, energy, defence, science and technology, agriculture, migration, and higher education. The 9th Round of Bilateral Political Consultations (BPC) between Pakistan and the Republic of Poland was held in Warsaw on 4 July 2025. The Pakistani delegation was led by Ambassador Muhammad Ayub, Additional Foreign Secretary (Europe), while the Polish delegation was headed by… — Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Pakistan (@ForeignOfficePk) July 5, 2025 Pakistani Ambassador to Poland Muhammad Sami-ur-Rehman and Polish Ambassador to Pakistan Maciej Pisarski also attended the talks. Regional and global developments, including those in South Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, were discussed in detail. Both delegations noted alignment on key issues and agreed to continue working closely at multilateral forums, including the United Nations. It was agreed that the next round of consultations will be held in Islamabad in 2026.
Express Tribune
16 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Pakistan reacts cautiously to Russia's Taliban recognition
Listen to article Pakistan on Friday reacted cautiously to the Russian decision recognising the Afghan Taliban government, saying the matter was between the two sovereign states. "We have seen the news about Russian recognition of the government in Kabul," said Foreign Office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan at a weekly news briefing. "Russia is an important country in the region. It has legitimate security interests in this part of the world and is also friends with all countries in the region. Pakistan enjoys very warm and cordial relations with Russia," he added. "Both countries are maintaining the positive trajectory and further expanding the cordial relations. Russia-Afghanistan relations are a matter between two sovereign states. We have taken note of Russian recognition," he said without offering any further comments. Unlike Pakistan's guarded reaction, China welcomed the Russian decision to formally recognize the Taliban government. China was the first country to send a full time Ambassador to Kabul in March last year and accepted the Taliban appointed envoy in Beijing. However, unlike Russia, China never formally announced that it had recognized the Taliban government. Diplomatic sources said other countries may also follow suit as regional countries earlier decided to take decision on Afghanistan with consensus. The United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, Turkey and Uzbekistan are in the process to appoint full time Ambassadors to Kabul. There was, however, no clarity if Pakistan would immediately or formally recognise the Taliban government. Pakistan has had a difficult relationship with the Taliban government over its failure to curb cross border terrorist attacks. Pakistan wanted to use the recognition as leverage with the Taliban government. However, China recently tried to mediate between Pakistan and China. Recently, China hosted a trilateral meeting in Beijing after which Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed to upgrade their diplomatic ties. The spokesperson said the process of appointment of ambassadors was underway. It is believed that in return for Pakistan upgrading the ties, the Taliban government had agreed to address Pakistan's security concerns. Officials familiar with the development said the Taliban government in recent weeks took some steps to address Pakistan's security concerns. However, they were of the view that a lot needed to be done as far as terrorist sanctuaries were concerned. Pakistan this week neutralised a major infiltration bid by terrorists from Afghanistan. As many as 30 intruders were killed in two operations in Hassen Kheil District of North Waziristan. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) in a statement urged the Afghan Taliban government to fulfill its promise of not allowing its soil to be used by terrorist groups.
Express Tribune
16 hours ago
- Express Tribune
30 terrorists neutralised as troops thwart border breach
Listen to article Security Forces killed 30 Indian proxy terrorists, foiling an infiltration attempt through the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in the North Waziristan district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, the media wing of the military said in a statement on Friday. The statement, issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said that a large quantity of weapons, ammunition and explosives was also recovered from the dead "Indian-sponsored Khawarij" – a term used for the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). "Own troops effectively engaged and thwarted Indian sponsored Khawarij's attempt to infiltrate. As a result of precise and skilful engagement, all thirty Indian sponsored khawarij were sent to hell. A large quantity of weapons, ammunition and explosives was also recovered," read the statement. "The security forces demonstrated exceptional professionalism, vigilance and preparedness, and prevented a potential catastrophe," it said. "The Interim Afghan Government also needs to check and prevent the use of Afghan soil by 'foreign proxies' for orchestrating terrorist activities against Pakistan." According to the ISPR statement, the security forces of Pakistan remained resolute and unwavering in their commitment to defend the nation's frontiers and to eradicate the menace of Indian-sponsored terrorism from the country. Those killed during the "successful operation in the general area of Hassan Khel in North Waziristan" district, included commander Najeeb alias 'Paraki' and Azhar, a key commander of the banned TTP. Azhar was the head of the "Tashkeel" group and a high-value target of the security agencies. President Asif Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif paid tribute to the security forces for eliminating 30 Indian-backed Khawarij terrorists and foiling their attempt to infiltrate through the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. In their separate statements, they commended the bravery of the security forces for carrying out the successful intelligence-based operations. "It is commendable that Pakistan's security forces are successfully conducting operations to eliminate Indian-backed terrorists," said the president. "Security forces' operations will continaue until the complete elimination of terrorists," President Zardari added. He reaffirmed the nation's unwavering resolve to eliminate terrorist elements and defend the nation. Prime Minister Shehbaz, who is currently on a two-day visit to Azerbaijan, said that Pakistan's courageous security forces served as an unyielding shield to protect the nation. "The entire nation salutes the security forces. We are determined to eliminate all forms of terrorism from the country." (WITH INPUT FROM APP)
