KABUL: The Afghan government on Wednesday rejected reports that an aircraft carrying a Pakistani parliamentary delegation was deliberately prevented by authorities from landing in Kabul last week.
Pakistan National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser left for Kabul with a nine-member delegation on the morning of April 8 on the invitation of the chairman of Afghanistan’s lower house, Mir Rahman Rahmani, to hold wide-ranging discussions, including on Afghan peace and cross-border trade.
The plane was turned back as it was about to descend at Kabul airport, over what was reported to be a security threat.
Tariq Aryan, a spokesman for the Afghan interior ministry, said at least four other flights were also prevented from landing at the airport that day as officials had to shut the facility to disarm an “an old explosive.”
“The airport was shut because this explosive was found,” Aryan told Arab News. “There was no other thing.”
The incident led to outrage among Afghan members of parliament, who summoned the chiefs of the country’s security establishment, including the interior minister, for a briefing on the matter.
“Their reasoning and explanations were not compelling to the lawmakers because they [Pakistani lawmakers] could have been informed about this [security threat] way ahead of the departure of his [Qaiser’s] flight,” Sadiq Ahmad Osmani, a lawmaker from Parwan province, told Arab News.
“We had full preparations, high protocol for his trip here, but unfortunately the news of the security threat there totally damaged our national hospitality. There are some at the top who had created the problem. It was an improper move,” he added.
Allah Gul Mujahid, a lawmaker from Kabul, said no trips by visiting officials had been canceled in the past 20 years over minor security threats.
Nazir Ahmad Hanaif, a lawmaker from Herat, openly blamed President Ashraf Ghani for the cancelation of Qaiser’s visit. Ghani’s office did not respond to requests for comment.
“He [Ghani] wants to damage further relations between the two countries,” Hanafi told Arab News, adding that the visit could have opened a new chapter in Pakistani-Afghan relations.
Afghan government denies deliberately preventing Pakistani delegation from landing in Kabul
https://arab.news/8ugy5
Afghan government denies deliberately preventing Pakistani delegation from landing in Kabul
- Interior ministry spokesperson says Pakistani lawmakers’ plane turned back because ‘old explosive’ found at airport had to be disarmed
- Afghan members of parliament enraged, say government lost an opportunity to open a new chapter in Pakistani-Afghan relations
Pakistan launches digital tools to trace life insurance claims, tighten motor insurance enforcement
- SECP rolls out SMS-based Life Insurance Policy Finder, orders insurers to join Motor Insurance Repository
- The regulator says centralized data will help authorities verify coverage, reduce long-unclaimed benefits
KARACHI: Pakistan’s securities regulator on Monday announced two digital initiatives aimed at overhauling how insurance data is stored and accessed, in a push to strengthen enforcement, improve transparency and make it easier for citizens to trace insurance coverage.
The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) announced in two separate statements it had introduced a nationwide Life Insurance Policy Finder to help families identify policies held by deceased relatives. It also directed all non-life insurers to join a centralized Motor Insurance Repository (MIR).
Both systems, developed with the Central Depository Company (CDC), seek to address longstanding gaps in a sector where weak records, low compliance and limited data-sharing have left motorists, policyholders and beneficiaries without reliable recourse.
“The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), in collaboration with the Central Depository Company of Pakistan Limited (CDC) and the Insurance Association of Pakistan (IAP), has introduced the Life Insurance Policy Finder Service,” it said in one of the statements. “This initiative is designed to facilitate the general public in locating life insurance policies of deceased loved ones.”
“The service addresses a long-standing challenge faced by families who remain unaware of life insurance policies held by their deceased relatives,” it added. “This lack of awareness often results in legitimate claims and benefits remaining unclaimed for years.”
The SECP said the initiative aims to strengthen consumer protection, promote transparency and provide structured and secure access to insurance benefits for rightful heirs and beneficiaries.
Under the new policy-finder service, which goes live on Dec. 15, individuals can send the CNIC number of the deceased via SMS to 99833.
If a policy exists, the relevant insurer will contact the beneficiary to verify details and guide them through the claims process. Life insurers and family takaful operators have also been instructed to participate fully and respond to queries within set turnaround times.
Separately, on the motor insurance side, all non-life insurers underwriting vehicle policies are required to sign a service-level agreement with the CDC within 60 days and begin uploading complete and validated policy data to the MIR.
The repository will allow provincial and federal authorities to verify third-party insurance coverage, a requirement that exists on paper but remains loosely enforced nationwide.
The SECP said the measures form part of its broader effort to promote digital transformation, improve compliance and safeguard consumer interest.
“A centralized and validated data repository will allow authorities to verify insurance coverage efficiently, addressing significant gaps in compliance,” it added.
