Fact-Check: False Claims by FactFocus About Diplomatic Passports Issued to General Asim Munir’s Family

Investigative journalist Ahmad Noorani deliberately hides key data and makes false claims about the passports of General Asim Munir’s daughters in his latest story for Fact Focus.

FactFocus Claim:

"Unauthorized issuance of Diplomatic Passports to General Asim Munir’s family members."

"Pakistan, as a country, is supposed to be governed by laws and regulations, but has it become a kingdom ruled by the law of the jungle? This can be clearly observed by the fact that immediately after General Asim Munir’s appointment as Chief of Army Staff, his family members—some of whom were not even eligible for diplomatic passports—were granted these prestigious travel documents. For instance, the married daughters of General Asim Munir, who were not part of his immediate family, were also issued diplomatic passports. These included Sundus Uzair, who is married to Uzair Ali Shan, and Khadija Asim, who is married to Syed Osama Bin Afzal. The Directorate General of Immigration & Passports confirmed to Fact Focus that these passports were indeed issued, and senior officials from the FIA confirmed that this was done in violation of established rules."

Screen shots from Fact Focus

The story was widely shared on social media by journalists and activists associated with PTI (Pakistan Tehrik e Insaaf) including Imran Riaz Khan, Moeed Pirzada, Shahbaz Gill, Ahmad Noorani, Adil Raja, Haider Mahdi, Wajahat Saeed Khan .

Fact-Check:

A recent article published by FactFocus, titled "Army Chief Or A King: GHQ Tightens Grip On Civilian Institutions Under General Asim Munir", makes *incorrect claims regarding the issuance of diplomatic passports to the family members of Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir The report alleges that **his married daughters, Sundus Uzair and Khadija Asim, were issued diplomatic passports in violation of passport regulations. However, a review of available evidence, official passport classifications, and government regulations contradicts these claims.

Contrary to FactFocus’s claims, the passports issued to Sundus Uzair and Khadija Asim were NOT diplomatic passports but official passports (Type: PO). This is confirmed by passport photos uploaded by FactFocus itself** and additional **verified data available**.

- Khadija Asim’s official passport: BA1854434 issued on 07 December 2022.

- Sundus Uzair’s official passport: BC1853984 issued on 07 December 2022.

- Both passports are categorized as Type: PO (Official Passport)**, not **PD (Diplomatic Passport)**.

I have worked previously with Ahmad Noorani and as lead data researcher at FactFocus , I have access to all the data which Ahmad Noorani as as it was me who procured the data for FactFocus. Ahmad Noorani was in possession of good quality photos of blue passports. He deliberately used blurred and cropped photos and gave them red tint to mislead people.



Evidence from same dataset which Ahmad Noorani used.

This also establishes that Ahmad Noorani published fake quotes/ references from government departments.
”The Directorate General of Immigration & Passports confirmed to Fact Focus that these passports were indeed issued, and senior officials from the FIA confirmed that this was done in violation of established rules."

These passports are not diplomatic any government department and employee could not have verified them as diplomatic departments.

The Directorate General of Immigration & Passports confirmed to Fact Focus that these passports were indeed issued, and senior officials from the FIA confirmed that this was done in violation of established rules."

- Diplomatic passports have a **red cover** and the **designation "PD"** in the passport type field. Official passports, on the other hand, have a dark blue cover and are marked "PO".

- The attached example of a diplomatic passport belonging to Irum Asim (General Asim Munir’s wife) further demonstrate the difference.

Understanding Pakistan’s Passport Types

According to the Directorate General of Immigration & Passports (DGIP), Pakistan issues three types of passports:

1. Ordinary Passport (Type: P, Green Cover): Issued to general Pakistani citizens for personal travel, including tourism, business, and study abroad.

2. Official Passport (Type: PO, Dark Blue Cover: Issued to government officials and functionaries traveling abroad for official state business.

3. Diplomatic Passport (Type: PD, Red Cover): Issued to high-ranking government officials, ambassadors, and those involved in official diplomatic missions.

The full set of passport rules can be accessed at the following official links:

- [Passport Rules 2021 (DGIP)] (https://dgip.gov.pk//downloads/PassportRules-2021.pdf)

- [Latest Amendments - SRO 01-2023](https://dgip.gov.pk//downloads/SRO-NO-01-2023-Passport.pdf)

- [Diplomatic Passport Entitlement](https://dgip.gov.pk/passport/diplomatic-passport.php)

Who Is Entitled to a Diplomatic Passport?

According to Schedule IV of the Passport Rules 2021, only the following individuals are entitled to **diplomatic passports (PD).

- The **President, Prime Minister, Federal Ministers, Judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts, Chiefs of the Armed Forces, Ambassadors, and other high-ranking officials**.

- The spouse and unmarried dependent children (under 18) of these individuals.

- **Married children of a government official, including the Army Chief, are NOT entitled** to a diplomatic passport unless they qualify independently under the rules.

For reference, the full eligibility criteria are available at [Diplomatic Passport Entitlement](https://dgip.gov.pk/passport/diplomatic-passport.php).

Conclusion:

The claim that General Asim Munir’s married daughters received diplomatic passports is false. Both **Sundus Uzair and Khadija Asim were issued official passports (Type: PO), not diplomatic passports (Type: PD). FactFocus has **misrepresented official documents** in an attempt to mislead the public. The **evidence provided contradicts the claims made in the article, proving that this is fake news.

This story was edited by Tahir Imran Mian

https://x.com/TahirImran