RAWALPINDI:Following the Inspector General of Police Punjab’s orders, police officers and officials holding dual citizenship have been directed to promptly submit their dual nationality certificates.

City Police Officer (CPO) Syed Khalid Hamdani, in his directives to all SPs, including security, CIA and Investigation, SDPOs, SHOs, Muharrar police lines, security division and in-charges of Dolphin Force, Elite Force and others to submit dual citizenship certificate, either they have been holding or not, without any delay by Monday.

Earlier in May, IGP Dr Usman Anwar had sought the details of the police officials and officres of Police Service of Pakistan (PSP), who had been holdingdualnationality.

The IGP had also sought the details of how many police officials of inspectors ranks, inspector legal and senior traffic wardens had been holding dual nationality.

In this regard, a performa, seeking the name of region and unit, names of the country holding dual citizenship, date of holding dual citizenship and name of inspector Establishment Branch, Inspector Legal, inspector /telecommunication, fingerprint bureau & Senior Traffic Warden etc holding dual nationality.

The IGP has directed the police across the province, including IGP National Highway & Motorway Police Islamabad, the commandant national police academy Islamabad, additional inspector generals of police South Punjab, Multan, Investigation branch, Special Branch, CTD, PHP, IAB, EPF, Operations, Crime Control Department (CCD) and Training, Punjab to provide the details of their dual citizenship.

All regional police officers (RPOs), DG anti-corruption Punjab, DG FIA Islamabad, COO Safe Cities Authority, the Chief Traffic Officers, Lahore, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Multan and Rawalpindi. All principal Police Training Schools in Punjab and Commandant Ring Road Police Lahore had been directed to provide the names of officers with ranks DSP, ASP and above, postings and dual nationality, if yes then also mention the name of the country.

A senior police officer revealed that 30 to 40 percent of officials/officers’ families had been holding dual nationalities of different countries, including Canada, Turkiye, UK and Malta and this trend is more in Punjab police compared to KPK and other provinces.

While citing one example of a police officer who went abroad for study after getting long leave from the police department but when he returned back to Pakistan, he was holding a dual nationality.

Another police officer said that one should be asked whether the police officers/officials themselves have been holding dual nationality and how many families of police officials/officers have been holding dual nationality.

Once the families of police officers/officials get the dual nationality, it becomes much easier for them to get it after retirement or in case of acquitting the job.

Published in Dawn, July 9th, 2025