RAWALPINDI, Nov 3: An intelligence report has asked the Punjab home department to direct the police to trace over 30 individuals belonging to the banned outfits who have been missing from their hometowns in the Rawalpindi division.

These suspects had been put on the schedule IV of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA).

Anyone put on the government watch list under the fourth schedule of the ATA should inform the police before moving out of the district and after return.

Besides, they also have to submit a surety bond to the police promising to remain peaceful.

A security source said the city police officer Rawalpindi and the district police chiefs of Attock, Jhelum and Chakwal had been directed to keep a vigil on individuals put on the watch list and booked under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

A report sent to the provincial authorities by the special branch expressed its ‘concern’ over the disappearance of 31 activists of the banned organisations who were on the watch list.

Of the 31 missing individuals, 14 belonged to Rawalpindi, 10 to Attock, six to Chakwal and one to Jhelum.

The intelligence report believed that some of the individuals found missing had gone to Waziristan.

The special branch warned the police that under the ATA 1997, the concerned district police officer (DPO) and the CPO were responsible for obtaining surety bonds from the individuals enlisted in category IV of the ATA and keeping a strict vigil on them especially during Muharram when security becomes a top priority of the government.

According to the intelligence, as many as 469 individuals belonging to the banned outfits had been enlisted in the schedule IV of the ATA by the law enforcement agencies.

Of these, 195 belonged to Rawalpindi, 177 were from Attock, 73 from Chakwal and 24 from Jhelum.

According to the authorities, the missing individuals had been tried for their alleged involvement in terror activities.

When contacted, City Police Officer Bilal Saddique Kamyana said: “Yes, some individuals have been missing and it is feared that they have gone to Afghanistan.

“However, the police have been seeking cooperation from intelligence agencies to track them down.”

He said there was no specific terror threat during Muharram.

However, the police will remain on alert and take all possible measures to maintain peace in the city, he added.