Newsnomics AJAY ANGELINA reporter |
On Monday, the government of Pakistan has decided to reverse the policy for not issuing passports to Pakistani nationals who had sought asylum or were already living on asylum in the foreign countries.
A high-level meeting, presided by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar, the foreign secretary, interior secretary, the director general of Immigration and Passports (Impass) was held to discuss the various matters related to the welfare of overseas Pakistani.
Conclusively, “the meeting decided to reverse the announced policy decision with immediate effect and to withdraw the circular of 5 June 2024, according to which it was decided earlier for not issuing passport to any individual who had sought asylum or already living on asylum abroad.
Issues relating to delays in the issuance of passports to Pakistani nationals residing abroad also came under discussion.
The interior secretary and the director general briefed the deputy prime minister about the ongoing efforts to streamline the process.
It was decided that the interior ministry and Impass will take steps to upgrade the infrastructure and equipment within the next 45 days and to accelerate the clearance of backlog relating to the issuance of passports to overseas Pakistanis.
The government’s earlier decision had been criticized by Pakistanis abroad, many of who are already suffering with different issues abroad and are in exile.
However, no official reason was given for the reversal of the decision by the government of Pakistan.
