Interior minister says 5,000 names will be removed from the ECL. PHOTO: PID
“The blacklist, which was run under the Passports Directorate and contained 52,000 names, will cease to exist from now onwards,” Nisar told a news conference on Sunday. “A passport list is being generated to target those using two passports for illegal activities.”
He said that the government was also removing names of 5,000 people from the ECL, making it the interior ministry’s prerogative to put anyone’s name on it.
“Some 8,000 names are on the list, which was being blatantly used to malign people. I hereby announce to remove some 5,000 names, except those belonging to proscribed organisations.”
He said his ministry would be assisted by the National Accountability Bureau and the Federal Investigation Agency. “The decision of putting a name on the ECL will also depend on the recommendations of the Supreme Court, high courts and defence forces.”
Nisar said a three-year timeframe would be allowed to justify the presence of anyone’s name on the list.
Upon failure to do so, the name in question would be removed. “Whosoever gets his/her name on the list will be notified and will be given a month’s time to prove the decision wrong.”
The government also blocked 80,000 computerised national identity cards in the last four years, added the minister.
Audio tape row
The interior minister reiterated that the former chief of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Lt Gen Zaheerul Islam, was not involved in any conspiracy to topple the PML-N government during last year’s marathon sit-ins of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) in Islamabad.
“We never found former ISI chief Zaheerul Islam in such mode,” Nisar told the news conference. “He [Zaheerul Islam] met Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif twice during the sit-ins. I attended these meetings too. No such issue came under discussion. Accusations against him are false.”
Veteran PML-N leader Mushahidullah Khan had claimed in an August 14 interview that a civilian intelligence agency had intercepted a call of the former ISI chief, who was giving instructions to create chaos during the sit-ins. The government had later dismissed Mushahid’s allegation and asked him to resign from his post.
“The military and the civilian government have always been on the same page,” said the interior minister. “The PML-N enjoys good relations with the army.”
Regarding the assassination of Punjab home minister Col (retd) Shuja Khanzada, Nisar said intelligence agencies had made headway in investigations into the August 16 suicide attack in Shadi Khan that had left 20 people, including Khanzada, dead.
Nisar, however, desisted from naming any banned outfit that might have been involved in the attack. “Our prime focus is on the attack, but it seems to be ‘a blind murder’ [at the moment].”
Kidnapped Chinese tourist rescued
Nisar said the intelligence agencies had rescued a Chinese tourist kidnapped last year in Dera Ghazi Khan. “The tourist was abducted last May and now we have recovered him from the north-west of the country.”
He said the tourist was rescued Saturday night after a successful operation and will be handed over to the Chinese Embassy in Islamabad soon.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 24th, 2015.
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