ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) informed the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Interior and Narcotics that thousands of Pakistanis who travelled abroad on visit and student visas had either overstayed or sought asylum, while new human-smuggling routes through Malaysia and Uzbekistan had also emerged.
The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Interior and Narcotics was also informed on Tuesday that around 10,000 Pakistanis who travelled to the United Kingdom on study visas later applied for political asylum. The disclosure came during a meeting of the committee, chaired by its Chairman Raja Khurram Nawaz. At the meeting, FIA Director General Dr Usman Anwar briefed the committee on passport, offloading and blacklisting policies, while members voiced concern that bona fide travellers with valid documents were also being offloaded.
Director General FIA Dr Usman Anwar informed the committee that passenger offloading constitutes an important component of Pakistan’s strategy to combat illegal migration, human trafficking and visa misuse. He said illegal migration was damaging Pakistan’s international reputation and had become a matter of concern for several countries, including members of the European Union. He said 580 Pakistanis who travelled to Belarus and 7,000 Pakistanis who travelled to Azerbaijan on visit visas did not return.
The FIA chief said new human-smuggling routes had emerged through Malaysia and Uzbekistan, while organised networks were also using Dubai, Cambodia as transit points to move Pakistanis illegally to Europe. According to the FIA, a total of 39,786 passengers were offloaded during 2025 for various immigration-related concerns. Of these, 20,408 passengers were stopped for incomplete documents and 12,673 for suspicious travel patterns or links to high-risk destinations. The FIA DG said 3,450 were offloaded on stop lists or Interpol records, 505 for questionable routes, 281 for forged documents, 176 due to unusual travel histories and 145 pending visa or document verification.
In addition, 258 minors were stopped over trafficking concerns and 24 for suspected overseas employment on visit visas while 175 Pakistanis arrested in Libya were repatriated and others detained in Cambodia.
The Minister of State for Interior, Talal Chaudhry, said organised begging by Pakistanis abroad had declined by 75pc and forged travel document cases by 31pc. He told the committee that illegal migration had fallen by 47pc, as acknowledged by European and American authorities, and said revised passport loss policies were being prepared amid concerns over repeated claims and identity fraud. The FIA told the committee it was using data analytics, AI tools and the IBMS to identify high-risk travellers and curb illegal migration, while Talal Chaudhry said the largely automated profiling system was being further upgraded to improve transparency and reduce human discretion.
The committee also considered the Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2025. Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said reforms were needed to incorporate digital evidence, CCTV footage, electronic communications, online FIR systems and modern prosecution tools to improve investigations, prosecutions, conviction rates and safeguard rights of victims and accused persons.
The minister requested the committee to allocate dedicated sessions for a clause-by-clause review of the Bill. Members supported the proposal and agreed that detailed deliberations should be undertaken during the budget session. Consequently, the committee deferred consideration of the bill and recommended that a series of meetings be held from June 16-18, to examine the amendments.
The ANF briefed the committee on a viral video case linked to trafficker Anmol “Pinky”. After police reports, the committee found allegations against Raja Pervaiz Ashraf baseless and disposed of the matter. The committee took up a Calling Attention Notice on delays in CDA land compensation in Islamabad sectors E-12 to H-16, directing coordination to resolve issues, and also noted delays in 2023 development projects and Rs40 million in outstanding contractor payments.
