Imran praises the government for including him on the ECL, but he has “no plans to travel abroad.”
The leader of the PTI claims he does not own any overseas real estate or enterprises.
Friday, Imran Khan, leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), praised the government for placing his name on the Exit Control List (ECL), claiming that he had “no plans to travel abroad.”
The government has put the names of the former prime minister, his wife Bushra Bibi, and dozens of other figures who have or have not resigned the PTI on a “no-fly list” for fear that they could leave overseas. Imran’s comments came a day after the government did so.
The former prime minister announced his decision to not go overseas through Twitter, writing, “because I neither have any properties or businesses abroad nor even a bank account outside of the country.”
The northern highlands of our country are his “favorite place on earth,” so he said that’s where he’d go on vacation “if and when” he got the chance.
Attaullah Tarar, the Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) for the Interior and Legal Affairs, revealed on Thursday to The Express Tribune that the “no-fly list” now includes the names of the ousted premier, his wife, and numerous other PTI leaders.
Although the phrase “Exit Control List” (ECL) may have sprung to mind, he avoided using it.
The SAPM, who is a federal minister, claimed that current and former PTI leaders including Qasim Suri, Murad Saeed, Hammad Azhar, Yasmin Rashid, and Aslam Iqbal were also included on the list.
Although the no-fly list or ECL is meant to prevent ‘dangerous’ persons from traveling overseas by prohibiting them from boarding flights, political opponents’ names have been added to the list on a regular basis by succeeding administrations for years.
An unspoken strategy of the ‘powerful circles’ has led to the decision to place the names on the no-fly list; this follows the arrest of PTI leaders in connection with the May 9 vandalism of key government and military installations and the subsequent making of their freedom dependent on leaving the party.
