NADRA Refuses To Block CNICs Of Absconding Citizens

ISLAMABAD: The National Registration and Database Authority (NADRA) has refuted reports suggesting the blocking of computerized national identity cards (CNICs) for any absconding citizens in connection with the investigation into 18 absconders related to the May 9 riots case.

NADRA officials have stated that the authority has not blocked the CNICs of any absconding citizens to date. They clarified that the authority is obligated to adhere to all legal procedures concerning absconders in various cases.

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It was clarified that the legal procedures for blocking the CNICs of the absconders have not been concluded yet.

Earlier reports had indicated that the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) had blocked the CNICs of absconding leaders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in connection with the May 9 riots cases.

Following recommendations from the Punjab police, the Interior Ministry directed NADRA to block the CNICs of PTI leaders declared absconders in the May 9 riots cases. The blocked CNICs reportedly include those of Murad Saeed, Azam Swat, Hammad Azhar, Aslam Iqbal, Karam Khokhar, Ali Amin Gandapur, Wasiq Qayyum Abbasi, Musarrat Cheema, Jamshed Cheema, Zubair Niazi, Malik Nadeem Abbas, and Ghulam Muhiuddin.

According to the police, the CNICs of the absconding PTI leaders will remain blocked until their appearance before Anti-Terrorism Courts (ATC) in the May 9 cases. The investigations stem from incidents following the arrest of the PTI chairman in the Al-Qadir Trust case.