Special flights: 1,097 stranded Tableeghi Jamaat men brought to country

Special Committee for the Affectees of Coronavirus (Covid-19) was informed that a total of 1,097 Tableeghi Jamaat members stuck in various foreign countries have been brought back to Pakistan through special flights.

The special committee met with Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaisar in the chair at the Parliament House on Friday.

The committee reviewed the progress made on the subject and directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) and other concerned officials to take immediate steps to repatriate Pakistani nationals stuck in Afghanistan, Iran and Middle Eastern countries.

Chairman of a Subcommittee of Special Committee and Minister of State for States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON) Shehryar Khan Afridi gave a detailed briefing on the progress made over the subject.

Afridi informed the speaker that 1,097 Tableeghi Jamaat members who were trapped in various countries abroad had been brought back to Pakistan through special flights in five days.

He told that 237 Afghan nationals of Tableeghi Jamaat had been sent back after testing negative for the COVID-19.

The committee was also informed that another 243 foreigners had also been flown out of Pakistan after testing negative besides thousands of Tableeghi Jamaat members trapped in various part of Pakistan due to lockdown had been sent back to their respective houses since the committee took over the job.

Shehryar Afridi said that 263 Pakistanis had been brought back from Japan and Bangkok to Islamabad and they had been quarantined and their samples sent for coronavirus testing.

He told that 50 zaireen from Taftan border had been brought to Punjab and later sent to their homes after spending time in quarantine.

"Moreover, another flight had brought back 250 Pakistanis from the United Arab Emirates who had also been sent to their homes after spending quarantine period. A flight from Jeddah had brought back 542 Pakistanis who had been quarantined," the minister told the committee.

Afridi told the committee that 200 prisoners had arrived from the United Arab Emirates at Faislabad and were quarantined.

Shehryar Afridi also submitted progress report on return of stranded Pakistanis in Iran, Afghanistan and Gulf states.

The speaker National Assembly appreciated the efforts of Shehryar Afridi and the efforts of federal and provincial government officials for making unprecedented efforts to help bring back Pakistanis from abroad.

He also praised the officials for facilitating the return of trapped zaireen and Tableeghi Jamaat members to their respective homes.

Speaker Asad Qaisar, however, took cognizance of the reports about reluctance of Afghan authorities to immediately repatriate Pakistanis stuck in Afghanistan and directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) to accelerate the process.

He also contacted Special Assistant to Prime Minister on National Security Dr Moeed Yusuf and directed to put the process on a fast track so as the trapped Pakistanis could be brought back on an emergency basis.

The speaker also decided to contact Afghanistan Ambassador to Pakistan and Pakistani envoy in Kabul, so as the matter could be taken up at the highest level and impediments in return of Pakistani nationals could be removed.

He also directed to convene a special meeting of the special committee next week to be attended by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Planning Minister Asad Umar, Minister for Religious Affairs Noorul Haq Qadri, Dr Moeed Yusuf and other stakeholders, so the matter could be resolved.

The speaker would also take up the matter of return of Pakistani labourers from Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman and Iran.

The speaker also took notice of poor quality of food and hygiene in quarantine centers in Faislabad and directed Chief Minister Punjab to order an immediate probe into the matter.

It was also decided that the speaker would chair a meeting on April 21 to speak to ulema, scholars and leaders of religious parties to help maintain religious harmony during the holy month of Ramazan.