Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah has said the names of around 3,000 people who were included in the ECL would be removed from the Exit Control List (ECL).

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad on Friday, the minister said that the Parliamentary committee on ECL has recommended to modify rules approved by the cabinet, adding that as per the new approved rules the names of the people included in the ECL would be withdrawn after 120 days automatically if no evidence is provided against them.

He further confirmed that there is a total of 4,863 people who are on the no-fly list, adding that the people who are included in terrorist activity, or risk to the country, or included in the ECL on the directions of the courts would not be facilitated.

The interior minister said people were also placed on the black list and the Provisional National Identification List (PNIL), adding that since the number of people on the lists is huge, there will be changes to them as well in the next few weeks.

The minister further said that when Imran Khan was sworn in as Prime Minister, the first thing he did was to take back the security from his political rivals. “But we are giving Imran Khan the same security that his principal secretary Azam Khan had approved,” he added.

He further said that there may be political differences but the incumbent government would not deprive anyone of their rights.

“There is nothing in the laws that we have made that will benefit us and will harm the political rivals.”

Speaking about Imran Khan’s claims of foreign conspiracy the minister said that he saw the letter sent to ex-Pakistan ambassador to Washington Dr Asad Majeed Khan, adding that no one’s name was written on it.

The minister further said that there should be no external interference in the country’s matters.