‘Overlooking passport’: 5,000 dirham fine to PIA

E-Paper | March 17, 2026

LAHORE: The Dubai immigration authorities have imposed a fine of 5,000 dirham on PIA for allowing a woman passenger to reach there on her son’s passport.

A PIA official told Dawn that the immigration and PIA authorities at the Lahore airport allowed Afshan Siddiqui to board a flight for Dubai on the passport of her son early this week.

“When she reached Dubai, the immigration authorities detained her and asked how she managed to travel on her son’s passport. She said she mistakenly carried the passport of her son and the immigration authorities back home perhaps did not notice this and allowed her to board the flight,” the official said.

The Dubai immigration deported her on a flight the following day and imposed a fine of 5,000 Dirham on Pakistan’s flag carrier.

The PIA official said: “Both the immigration and PIA officials are responsible for this gross negligence.”

An inquiry had been launched into the incident and this amount would be recovered from those found guilty, he added.

Published in Dawn, December 20th, 2015

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membooba

Dec 20, 2015 09:36am

hahaha, this is very good article

Recommend 0

malika

Dec 20, 2015 09:43am

PIA falling apart. Privatization is the need of the hour

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Santosh Menon

Dec 20, 2015 09:43am

Unbelievable!!. "Heads" must roll (Hope so).

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imrna

Dec 20, 2015 09:44am

Recover the money from the person who took the money from her to travel on board.

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Zafar Ahmed

Dec 20, 2015 09:47am

She must be belonging to elite class and it is the immigration & passport control's responsibility to check the traveler's document & passport !

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Shaukat Ali Khan

Dec 20, 2015 09:48am

8th wonder !!!

Recommend 0

Dec 20, 2015 10:05am

What a joke. Wonder how she got through security.

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Waqas

Dec 20, 2015 10:09am

That's a new low!

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hameed

Dec 20, 2015 10:12am

We all know passport check is through immigration where it is scanned and passenger's photo taken, then passport is stamped and another person rechecks it before passenger goes to waiting lounge. Therefore, although it is an initial oversight of airline, actual and full responsibility lies with FIA and not the airline who have been fines as UAE authorities can not fine the immigration authorities. Airline never checks anyone's passport after issuing boarding card and once passenger's passport has been stamped as EXIT by immigration authorities..

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Imad Qureshi

Dec 20, 2015 10:15am

What was FIA doing at the airport? Didn't she go through the immigration?

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Faisal

Dec 20, 2015 10:22am

PIA is a mere joke, privatize it as soon as possible.

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Syed Husain

Dec 20, 2015 10:32am

This incident has very little to do with PIA staff. Immigration and security personnel at the airport are to blame for this error and should be severely punished.

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Abdul Rehman

Dec 20, 2015 10:48am

Not only PIA. When you arrive at the airport, there are people standing in the immigration hall shouting names for people. Is it for protocol only?? I doubt it.

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Laila

Dec 20, 2015 10:56am

unbelievable :/

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M Jamal

Dec 20, 2015 10:57am

I am at the Karachi airport now and can see the pathetic condition as the employees posted here in different departments does not seem to be at par with the employees of other international airports.They lack education,attitude,localisation and training as they are appointed purely on nepotism basis.Where merit is killed, you will find all types of lapses.All recruitments to be made thru IBA/LUMS scrutiny test without any compromise and those presently at job must pass the test to continue their services.CJ has rightly pointed that we won't survive if we continue bad governance,corruption and nepotism.

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Rabia Salman

Dec 20, 2015 11:02am

LolZzzz only PIA can do this Great people to fly with.

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Tamza

Dec 20, 2015 11:08am

@malika This is NOT PIA's responsibility/ Lahore passport control is the primary culprit in this case.

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Truth seeker

Dec 20, 2015 11:23am

90% PIA employees must be replaced asap. As for the fine, the criminals must have already made much more through bribes.

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Adnan

Dec 20, 2015 11:27am

Where are the immigration check points asking unnecessary questions like where are you going? why are you going? worse is that they didn't even notice the pic of male/female on passport.

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Zafar Ahmed

Dec 20, 2015 11:27am

@M Jamal Agree, all is being run in this country on nepotism since last 68 years.

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Skeptic

Dec 20, 2015 11:30am

I 'm pretty sure, those responsible for the debacle are still on their jobs in Lahore.

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Abdulla Hussain

Dec 20, 2015 11:30am

"The Dubai immigration deported her on a flight the following day and imposed a fine of 5,000 Dirham on Pakistan’s flag carrier" ONLY this amount, the fine should have been 50,000 dirhams. Highly negligent staff. I think some are trying to fail PIA to a level where they can take control of this National Carrier of Pakistan

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Zafar Ahmed

Dec 20, 2015 11:31am

The immigration authorities back home perhaps did not notice this and allowed her to board the flight..The official said...What a joke !

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Mahmood

Dec 20, 2015 11:32am

Keep this up, PIA, and the flights will be banned from most of the world.... especially in this environment where fake passports have been used to enter Europe and cause havoc.

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Baaligh

Dec 20, 2015 11:35am

The PIA official said: “Both the immigration and PIA officials are responsible for this gross negligence.” An inquiry had been launched into the incident and this amount would be recovered from those found guilty, he added. This is a grave and criminal act for sure and so just recovery of the amount of fine can not in any way be termed as any punishment.

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Mahmood

Dec 20, 2015 11:39am

There must be some collusion between her/family and authorities at Lahore Airport... It is highly unlikely that four different check points did not notice a picture of a boy/man and the lady involved. You have to show pport and ticket just to enter departure hall. Than check at Airline counter, next Immigration, and then the security check before you proceed to the gate.... Very suspicious that all these points did not detect the discrepancy.

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Baaligh

Dec 20, 2015 11:47am

@hameed : This matter can not be ignored as a human error or just a routine lapse. In all probability it seems to be an act of mutual connivance and some thing fishy.

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karan

Dec 20, 2015 11:52am

A 5000 AED fine seems like eyewash compared to the magnitude of this mistake.

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kamranzaki

Dec 20, 2015 12:19pm

They should track her on CCTV and see who actually processed her at the airport and fire not fine.

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syed wasim haider

Dec 20, 2015 12:23pm

Another gift for tax payers.

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Ahmad

Dec 20, 2015 12:27pm

This is a joke there are 7 passport check points on each of the international airport in Pakistan, as I am a frequent traveled and previously traveled to/from Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad & Multan Airports. First ASF check your passport, then Customs, then Drug Department, then Airline staff( check in), then immigration( for stamping), then immigration again (checking the stamp and picture as if everyone(without VIP protocol is a criminal lol) and then Security. Sometimes ASF check it even before u get in to the airport. I am sure she would be from some VIP family who didn't went through this process herself and gave some money to someone to get it done.

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M. Ahmed

Dec 20, 2015 12:30pm

What a shame to bring this kind of humility to the country. Deterioration at all levels!

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IBN E ASHFAQUE

Dec 20, 2015 12:39pm

@malika Privatization is not the answer to our problems.....It will increase social inequality and lead to greater strife in society......as well as in our personal lives.......

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Debashis

Dec 20, 2015 12:42pm

This can't be mistake, I have traveled to Karachi few years back and the checking is enormous, Passport is checked at least 4 to 5 times.

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ALI RAZA

Dec 20, 2015 12:47pm

Just 5,000 AED.It shold be 500,000 AED with suspension of all the flights with immediate effect.

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Bilal

Dec 20, 2015 01:22pm

She definitely had "protocol". Passport is checked at 7 different points before you board the aircraft. First at the entrance to the terminal, second by customs, third by drugs checking counter, fourth by airline, fifth by FIA/immigration where they take your picture, sixth by FIA again before letting you go to the lounge, seventh by the airline again before letting your board !!! So how is it possible that people sitting at these SEVEN checkpoints failed to check here passport and notice that its not here own passport. Bribes do not take you that far! Most definitely wife/daughter of some general, politician or sarkari babu who was escorted by some chamcha official.

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Azmeen

Dec 20, 2015 01:42pm

A very shameful act.

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Morad786

Dec 20, 2015 01:42pm

Noon league doing enough damage so it becomes a tainted and contaminated asset. Than we as a nation will be glad for it to be privatized at a peanut price.......

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Larka

Dec 20, 2015 01:55pm

Its definitely a fault of PIA, but a bigger crime was done by immigration staff. I

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Merchant

Dec 20, 2015 02:02pm

We need open sky policy!! PIA will get better in the face of stiff competition without the need of privatisation.

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Timeto stopthis

Dec 20, 2015 02:03pm

@Tamza So then please explain what is the job of the airline check in staff, if not to check your passport, visa status and your picture? Its not as if you are travelling on a bus that they only need to see your ticket!!

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PHILOSOPHER (from Japan)

Dec 20, 2015 02:09pm

At least she had her son's passport. She could've traveled without passport by PIA. Baakamal log Lajawab service.

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Timeto stopthis

Dec 20, 2015 02:18pm

She is obviously a well connected VIP traveller and no one has bothered to even look at her passport before stamping her through. One rule for the rich and another one for the poor whose passports are looked at by 10 different people. Only problem is such things make Pakistan look bad.

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Merchant

Dec 20, 2015 02:23pm

I am sure bribery was involved in this case and is a clear criminal case.

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Lafanga

Dec 20, 2015 02:37pm

Blame PIA for many things but how can this be PIA fault? Passport and immigration control is FIA responsibility. Who put the exit stamp on the passport?

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Aamir

Dec 20, 2015 02:50pm

@malika What about FIA?

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M. Malik

Dec 20, 2015 03:19pm

Apart from obvious negligence/oversight/collusion PIA and Airport Officials, I am more interested to know who this person was, and her reasons for traveling to Dubai? After all the hoopla surrounding Tafsheen Malik's alleged terrorists mayhem in California - after she managed to get into the U.S. on a K-1 Fiance Visa, Pakistani government needs to be extra vigilant to prevent more backlash from foreign governments, and to avoid further scorn heaped on Pakistanis overseas.

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Lala

Dec 20, 2015 06:20pm

Fine Emirates 10,000 Dirhams for sending Deans Jones to Pakistan without a valid visa. Law applies to everyone.

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Danish Mehmood

Dec 20, 2015 06:36pm

not possible without immigration authorities involvement. these guys carefully scrutinise the passports and get a foto also, before letting to go onboard.

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Khan- Pakistani

Dec 20, 2015 08:59pm

Fire the immigiration and PIA guys responsible and charge Eithad also 5000 US dollars for bringing Australian player without visa.

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Naseem

Dec 21, 2015 04:29am

She must be related to the CAA Chief Executive! Shocking oversight by different staff at the airport. They must be incompetent yet they are appointed to implement correct procedures. Time and again the name of the nation is dragged into the gutter level. Heads must roll. The CAA chief executive and the PIA management must be named, shamed, fined, sacked and tried in court.

Recommend 0

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