Senate blocks move to withdraw diplomatic passport privileges from state ministers, advisers

Dawn · 26/10/2026، 8:41:12 PM

ISLAMABAD: The Senate on Monday blocked a private member’s bill seeking to withdraw the free-for-all issuance of diplomatic passports to ministers of state, advisers, special assistants and senior bureaucrats and rejected the motion for introduction of the Passports (Amendment) Bill, 2026. The bill was moved by PTI Senator Faisal Saleem Rahman, chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Interior, along with senators Samina Mumtaz Zehri and Saifullah Abro. Declaring his opposition to the bill, State Minister for Interior Tallal Chaudhry said, “You are bringing an amendment to the authority of the cabinet which you have not seen.” To this, Senator Faisal responded that the bill was about diplomatic passports, which only ministers should have. “There should be no distribution in the issuance of diplomatic passports,“ he observed. PPP Senator Zamir Hussain Ghumro argued that a minister of state is also a representative of the Parliament. According to the copy of the bill available with Dawn , it sought to amend the Passports Act 1974 by inserting a new Section 12A for restriction on diplomatic passport entitlement of ministers of state, advisers, special assistants, federal secretaries and director generals. It provided that no diplomatic passport shall be issued, re-issued or renewed to a minister of state, adviser to the prime minister, special assistant to the prime minister, federal secretaries other than the foreign secretary, or director general, by virtue of holding such office, and any such passport already held shall be surrendered to the prescribed authority within 30 days of commencement of the Act. The proposed bill clarified that nothing shall prevent such persons from obtaining or retaining an ordinary or official passport where otherwise entitled, and nothing shall affect any independent entitlement arising by virtue of any other office, appointment or diplomatic assignment which lawfully carries such entitlement. The bill’s statement of objects and rea