‘Missing’ passport dept official resurfaces after 20 days

• Assistant Director Hayat Tarar was missing since May 30: sources. 
• Court had ordered to register case against the passport authorities.
• Govt officials accused Hayat Tarar of involvement in corruption.

ISLAMABAD: An official of the Directorate General of Immigration & Passports, who was missing since May 30, was traced on Saturday, sources told Geo News.

According to sources, Assistant Director Mohammad Hayat Tarar contacted the police himself after his family had filed a report of his disappearance.

Tarar’s brother Sadaf Hussain had filed a writ petition in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) for his brother’s disappearance, said the sources.

The court had ordered to register a case against the passport authorities at the request of Tarar’s brother. His family had accused them of keeping the assistant director in illegal detention.

However, after the official contacted the police, Hussain submitted a statement to the IHC, saying that his brother had “voluntarily absented himself from the scene for reasons best known to him”.

The government officials said that the assistant director is accused of irregularity and corruption in the issuance of passports.

Moreover, the sources said that he was suspended due to various allegations.