ISLAMABAD: Pakistan yesterday refused to accept a deportee, brought from the US, on the grounds that he was deported without due permission of the Ministry of Interior.

A spokesman of the Ministry of Interior said that Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) at the Benazir Bhutto International Airport Islamabad did not allow re-admission to a person who was brought from Washington DC along with the escort of US police.

“He was sent back through the same flight as the authorities concerned had neither verified his Pakistani citizenship nor due approval was sought from the Ministry of Interior,” he said, adding the person had been deported for his alleged involvement in criminal activities in US. The Ministry of Interior also imposed a fine amounting to $5000 on Turkish Airline on which the person was travelling.

FIA told the US police that the person was deported for violating prescribed procedures and local laws, the ministry spokesman said.
A few weeks ago, Interior Minister Ch Nisar, while suspending the re-admission treaty with European Union (EU) countries, had said Pakistan would not accept any deportee without verification of its Pakistani citizenship. He had said that some EU countries were deporting migrants illegally to Pakistan - without proper verification of their citizenship from local authorities and in some cases falsely accusing people of involvement in terrorism. He had also said that Pakistan would not allow any country to label its innocent citizens as terrorists. He had announced that around 90,000 people were deported to Pakistan only in 2015. After this, the interior ministry had asked the Pakistani missions abroad not to issue travel documents for any deportee unless the ministry and National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) verified his/her Pakistani citizenship.

Recently, the Ministry of Interior, through a notification, had asked all Pakistani missions abroad that temporary documents to any deportee would not be issued unless its permission and verification of his/her Pakistani citizenship.

In the first week of December, Pakistan had refused to accept 30 migrant deportees from three European Union (EU) states, causing escalating the tensions between Islamabad and EU with both sides making contradictory claims. Pakistan had refused to re-admit these migrant deportees from Greece, Bulgaria and Austria saying they were sent to the country illegally and in violation of international laws.
Separately, FIA yesterday arrested most wanted red book proclaimed offender during a raid in Gujranwala. FIA arrested most wanted proclaimed offender M. Farooq alias Farooq Pal son of Muhammad Aslam and a resident of village Pal District Gujrat. His name was in FIA’s Red Book of 2012.