Caretaker interior minister bans issuance of new arms licences

ISLAMABAD: In a significant move, the caretaker government placed a ban on the issuance of arms licences, ARY News reported.

The order was passed by the caretaker interior minister Sarfraz Bugti soon after formally assuming charge of his office.

During the meeting, senior officials briefed the minister about the Ministry of Interior and its attached departments.

The minister vowed to tackle the challenge of terrorism and ensure the security of state and its citizens. We will frame a strategy for the protection of lives, rights, and properties of all citizens regardless of their religious or ethnic identity, he said.

Bugti further said that the protection of every citizen is the responsibility of the state. “Every citizen has the right to move in the country”, he said, adding that no group will be allowed to resort to violence.

It is pertinent to mention here that weeks before the end of the coalition government term, the lawmakers in the National Assembly on several occasions had strongly protested over the delay in the issuance of arms licences and the non-cooperative attitude of the bureaucracy in this regard.