Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry has ruled out scrapping lifetime blue passports for parliamentarians. He defended the current arrangement at a meeting of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Interior on Thursday, while acknowledging that other countries have raised concerns about the large number of such passports Pakistan has issued.
The committee also received a briefing on the Hina Javed murder case in Rawalpindi. Members also heard corruption allegations against a housing society which, according to committee member Agha Rafiullah, reports directly to the prime minister.
Minister defends three 10-year blue passport terms
Chaudhry questioned why objections should be raised to issuing blue passports three times, with each issue valid for 10 years. “What is the issue if we issue it three times for 10 years each?” he asked.
He said Pakistan had officially issued around 75,000 blue passports and that several countries had expressed serious reservations about the figure. In his view, the volume was hurting the standing of Pakistan’s passport and its visa-free travel arrangements with other countries.
“The better the rating and ranking of our passport, the greater our respect,” Chaudhry said. He added that the issuance of these passports also had implications for Pakistan’s agreements with other nations.
Rafiullah rejected the minister’s reasoning. “I do not agree with you. I am ready to surrender my own passport,” he said, arguing that parliamentarians are elected representatives and that the explanation did not make sense. He urged the government to present the relevant legal provisions rather than rely on general arguments.
Chaudhry maintained that blue passports were also undermining the standing of ordinary green passports. He said the government would share further details at the committee’s next meeting. A member also asked for details of 30,000 passports that had been subtracted from the total issued, and Chaudhry said the government would provide information covering the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, officials on deputation and former officials.
Senate passes passports amendment bill unanimously
Earlier, on Monday, the Senate unanimously passed the Passports (Amendment) Bill 2026. The debate centred on blue passports issued to lawmakers and the families of government officials, and the government announced plans for fresh legislation to withdraw the facility for the children of former bureaucrats.
Chaudhry told the upper house, which is chaired by Chairman Yousuf Raza Gilani, that a new bill would end the facility for families of retired bureaucrats. He argued that the number of blue passports must be regulated to protect Pakistan’s international standing.
The committee also discussed the issuance of arms licences in Islamabad. Chaudhry said licences had previously been sold on the streets of Rawalpindi even though they were linked to Islamabad, and added that the current government had not issued a single licence.
Hina Javed case briefing and IBCH corruption claims
The briefing on the Hina Javed case was attended by the regional police officer, the city police officer and officials of the Crime Control Department. The meeting also covered alleged corruption in a housing society and concerns about judges appointed with links to housing societies.
Rafiullah questioned the appointment of a housing society’s legal adviser as a judge, saying such appointments raised concerns about accountability and possible conflicts of interest. “When you question a housing society about corruption, its legal adviser is appointed as a judge,” he said. He criticised the committee for not putting questions about the alleged corruption to the relevant law secretary, and called for closer scrutiny of the matter.
Rafiullah said the housing society, identified in the meeting as IBCH, reports directly to the prime minister. He alleged that the scale of corruption there was far greater than Rs10 billion; these remain his allegations.
The committee chairman, meanwhile, questioned how a court stay could prevent a parliamentary standing committee from hearing a case that the committee was already considering.
