Interior minister directs NADRA to identify foreigners who illegally obtained citizenship

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Tuesday directed the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) to immediately identify aliens who managed to illegally obtain Pakistani citizenship, and remove them from the national database.

The minister, during his visit to Nadra headquarters, chaired a high-level meeting where he praised Nadra’s performance and effective public services, and directed it to fully support law enforcement agencies in the repatriation of foreigners illegally residing in Pakistan.

Nadra Chairman Lt Gen Muhammad Munir Afsar briefed the Naqvi on the institution’s performance, as well as its ongoing and future projects. Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Director General Dr Usman Anwar and senior Nadra officials were also present on the occasion.

Naqvi noted significant improvements in Nadra’s services over the past two years and directed that more modern services be introduced for public convenience.

He also instructed Nadra to build state-of-the-art offices in major cities on purchased land instead of in rented buildings and sought a master plan from the authority to that effect.

The federal minister also assured inter-agency coordination and full ministerial support.

Chairman Nadra Lt General Munir Afsar said during the briefing that Nadra has cancelled millions of identity cards belonging to deceased individuals, and with the help of the PTA, mobile SIMs issued to these individuals are being blocked.

He said Nadra has taken several steps to improve service delivery, including biometric verification using facial recognition, which requires cooperation from other agencies.

Nadra has set a 30-day deadline to resolve ID card-related issues, he added.