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ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary body on Thursday asked the government to permit issuance of diplomatic passports to chairpersons of Senate standing committees and the deputy chairman of the upper house of the parliament. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) senator, who has not resigned from the standing committees despite directives of PTI founding chairman Imran Khan to quit the standing committees, chaired a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Interior and Narcotics Control here at the Parliament House. He suggested the amendment to the passport rules to extend diplomatic passports to chairpersons all standing committees and the Deputy Chairman of the Senate. PTI Senators Saifullah Abro and Senator Falak Naz also attended the meeting. Mustaf Jamal Kazi, Director General (DG) Immigration and Passport (I&P), said that the decision to issue the diplomatic passports to anyone other than the entitled person is not the prerogative of the I&P Directorate. He said that the deputy chairman of the Senate and heads of the panel on interior need to write letters to the Prime Minister, and then the federal cabinet would make a decision regarding it. He said that diplomatic and official passports are processed under the Passport Rules, 2021. Adding any new category or individual to this schedule is the sole prerogative of the federal cabinet through an amendment to the respective passport rules, he said. Kazi said that with the approval of the government, some changes have been made in the passport. As many as 135 security features have been introduced in the new edition of passports to prevent forgery and misuse, he said, adding that the new edition of passports of children below 12 years’ age will now include the mother’s name alongside the father’s, to prevent human smuggling. He said that the visa pages of the new passport will also carry images of historic monuments from different provinces. Kazi dismissed rumours circulating on social media claiming that the whole design has been changed and that the words “Islamic Republic of Pakistan” have been removed from the passport cover. The DG has refuted these rumors, stating that the images circulating online are fake and digitally altered. The printing of the new edition of passports has started, and issuance will start next year. A senior official of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) briefed the Senate’s panel regarding six officers of the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA), booked on charges of bribery and misuse of power. He said that the case has been registered on the allegation of illegal gratification from Aroob Jatoi. However, during the inquiry, a larger network of corruption was uncovered, suggesting the initial incident was merely a “tip of the iceberg”, he said. He said that the investigation found that the illegal gratification was part of a process to sustain the officials’ postings and transmit illegal money up the chain to the high-ups of the NCCIA Lahore. The case has been divided into two parts, i.e, allegations against the officers directly involved in receiving illegal gratification from the complainant Aroob Jatoi and the allegations regarding officers allegedly involved in receiving and transmitting illegal gratification up the chain to the NCCIA high-ups to save their postings, he said. The accused officers were arrested on October 27. The Investigation Officer (IO) has sought a nine-day physical remand. Additionally, the accounts of the accused officials and their close family members have been blocked, and the properties belonging to the alleged persons have been traced, he said. He said that the alleged persons involved include Chaudhry Sarfaraz, Additional Director, Zawar Ahmed, Deputy Director, Muhammad Usman, Deputy Director, Ayaz Khan, Deputy Director, who has not been arrested, Sohaib Riaz Assistant Director, Mujtaba Zafar, Assistant Director, Yasir Ramzan, Sub Inspector, Ali Raza Sub Inspector, and Saman Aziz, a Private Person. Most of the arrested persons are currently on physical remand, he said. The committee expressed grave concern over the increasing complaints of misconduct and inefficiency within the FIA. Senator Shahadat Awan highlighted a critical gap in the justice process, observing that there is a lack of prosecution in the NCCIA. He noted that while FIRs are registered, no substantial progress follows, and many cases remain pending before the courts. In response, the Director General (DG) of the NCCIA, Syed Khurram Ali acknowledged administrative lapses and capacity constraints within his authority. He informed the committee that a complete structural revamp of the NCCIA is underway and will be completed within six months. He further stated that new personnel with strong technical backgrounds will be inducted into the agency within three months. Senators Saifullah Abro, Falak Naz, Bilal Khan, and Dilawar Khan shared personal experiences of fraud committed against them by organized cybercrime gangs. Senator Falak Naz Chitrali told the committee that the scammers had detailed information about her family and children. “A man named Faisal called me in the name of setting up a counselling centre and managed to collect money,” she revealed, expressing disappointment that despite repeated complaints to the NCCIA, no hearing was held. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
