Image Source: The Express Tribune
The National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) has removed its Director General, Zulfiqar Ahmed, from his position after an investigation by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) revealed that his academic degrees were fake.
The investigation uncovered several issues with his qualifications, including an MBA degree supposedly issued by George Mason University, which bore the signature of someone who was not the university’s president. Additionally, his BBA degree was found to be from a college that had a completely different name at the time the degree was claimed to be issued.
The Islamabad High Court reviewed the findings of the HEC and upheld its decision, which ultimately led to NADRA’s chairman taking strict disciplinary action against Zulfiqar Ahmed by dismissing him from his post.
In a separate matter, NADRA has disclosed that over the past five years, it blocked more than 71,000 Computerized National Identity Cards (CNICs) due to various discrepancies. Out of these, 44,460 CNICs were later verified and unblocked after the necessary checks were completed.
Meanwhile, the Sindh government has called for amendments to Pakistan’s Citizenship Act, emphasizing the need to address ongoing challenges in the process of verifying identity and citizenship documents.
