ISLAMABAD: As many as 1,554 terrorists were arrested in Pakistan during the last year. This was stated by Parliamentary Secretary for Interior and Narcotics Control, Afzal Khan Dhandla on Friday on the floor of the National Assembly.
During question hour in the House, Dhandla said that comparison of crime rates of years 2015 and 2016 show a declining trend in Islamabad.
He said that out of 1,554 terrorists, 799 were arrested from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, 418 from Punjab, 178 from Sindh, 40 from Balochistan, 7 from Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), 88 from FATA, 10 from AJK and 14 from Gilgit-Baltistan.
He further said that preventive measures taken by ICT police have resulted in a decrease in crime in Islamabad. He added that these measures included a survey of Katchi Abadies to flush out criminals, combing and search operations, random checking of guest houses and hotels and joint patrolling by Rangers and ICT police.
In response to a question, he said official and gratis passports were issued to 2002 non-entitled persons prior to June, 2013. However, these passports were cancelled under the present government on the instructions of the interior minister. Afzal Dhandla said that currently, issuance of passports is done strictly according to policy.
