Arms licences: Nisar issues deadline till December for validation

Announces new policy on ECL; will reveal important information regarding Imran Farooq murder case soon

ISLAMABAD: Interior minister Chaudhary Nisar has unveiled a fresh arms policy according to which those who do not validate their licenses before December 31, 2015 will have their permits declared null and void.

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad on Sunday, Nisar advised licence holders to validate their credentials with the National Database Registration Authority (NADRA).

Read: Court allows interior ministry to issue new plastic arms licences

He said those below 25 years of age will not be issued the licence, whereas guns of prohibited bore will only be allowed to those facing security threat.

Nisar maintained that those availing the facility will have to be genuine taxpayers, adding that the interior ministry restricted the licence issuance policy as soon as he took charge, and the ministry is still in the process of regularising the licences as arms are many in number.

“Except for Punjab, all other provinces do not have any restriction in place,” he said adding, “We intend to conduct the regularisation process through NADRA”.

Read: Forging arms licences: Three NADRA officials arrested

The interior minister urged all other provinces to follow suite to ensure smooth law and order in the entire country.

Nisar also revealed that some 4,500 licences were declared bogus as they carried incorrect credentials of their owners.

Policy on ECL

Nisar announced there will be no victimisation in inclusion of anyone's name in the Exit Control List (ECL), saying only court orders will enable such a move.

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“Pakistan is not a banana republic and should governed by appropriate laws,” he said.

Referring to the fact that some names in the ECL exist for the last 30 years, Nisar said name of a person in future will be in the list for only a year.”

He added that the ECL carried names of 7,500 Pakistanis.

'Electoral rigging being investigated'

Apparently referring to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf spearheading, the key Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) man also criticised "those issuing their own verdicts when the matter of alleged rigging in the elections is still being investigated".

Read: Interior ministry seeks to place senior MQM leaders on ECL: sources

He questioned why the judges of the tribunal did not refrain such people from issuing the statements.

“Those fooling the nation on NADRA report must abstain from such practice,” he asserted.

Regarding the case of Muttahida Qoumi Movement (MQM) slain leader Imran Farooq, Nisar said a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) had completed its report, adding that he will reveal important information regarding the arrest of a suspect in relation to the case, in a few days.