Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Saturday the government would not allow anyone to malign the country while travelling abroad, state-run Radio Pakistan reported.

According to the report, he made the remarks during a visit to Jinnah International Airport.

“Passengers with unverified and illegal documents will not be allowed to travel abroad,” the report quoted him as saying.

He also said professional beggars disguised as passengers would not only be offloaded but would also face legal action, the report said.

The minister asserted that those in possession of valid travel documents had neither been stopped in the past nor would they be stopped in the future.

He said facilitating passengers was the government’s priority. He lauded the officials from the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) for ensuring travellers had valid documents and ensuring an effective checking process, the report added.

Earlier this month, while chairing a meeting to review the performance of the Immigration Wing of the FIA, Naqvi had issued orders for strict screening of travel documents at airports.

His directive had come amid complaints of arbitrary offloading at airports despite travellers carrying valid documents.