Prime Minister Imran Khan has withdrawn the state minister for interior’s authority to include and remove names of suspected militants and other criminals from the Exit Control List (ECL).
According to the new directive, the authority to place names on ECL has been given to the federal cabinet, which will grant approval or reject the recommendations of the Interior Ministry in this regard. The premier has also abolished the cabinet’s sub-committee on ECL, which reviewed requests to include or remove names from the list.
The previous government, in light of the Supreme Court’s orders, had withdrawn the powers from the Interior Ministry. However, the interior minister was allowed to put names of terrorists, members of proscribed organisations, and those requested by the security organisations, in the ECL.