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March, 23 2005
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Wednesday
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12 Safar 1426
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Restoration of religion column proposed
By Our Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD, March 22: A five-member ministerial committee on Tuesday recommended restoration of religion column in the passport. Speaking at a press conference, Defence Minister Rao Sikandar Iqbal, who headed the committee, said the committee had submitted its report to Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz. The federal cabinet will take up the report on Thursday. The committee was constituted on Jan 5 after religious parties launched a campaign against removal of the column from the new machine-readable passports. It was asked to look into the issue and submit its report to the federal cabinet.
The committee also recommended that the religion of the passport holder be stamped on passports already issued.
It recommended that passports printed and issued in future should carry the words ‘Islamic Republic of Pakistan’ as in the old passport. The defence minister said that interim orders had been issued to Nadra to arrange a new software for the printing of passports which should include the religion column.
The committee, which comprised Information Minister Sheikh Rashid, Education Minister Lt-Gen (retd) Javed Ashraf, Minister for Narcotics Control Ghous Bux Maher, Sardar Yar Mohammad Rind and Petroleum Minister Amanullah Khan Jadoon, held consultations with the interior ministry and Nadra officials to study all aspects of the matter before finalising its report.
Sheikh Rashid, who was also present on the occasion, said the decision to remove the religion column was taken during the tenure of former Prime Minister Zafarullah Jamali and the cabinet of Shaukat Aziz had decided to change it through the ministerial committee.
Mr Iqbal said the committee unanimously recommended that: i) The religion of the passport holder may be stamped at a suitable place in the new passport, without disturbing the international compatibility of the software system. ii) The words ‘Islamic Republic of Pakistan’ should be inscribed on the cover of the passport.
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