In a new twist to the controversy involving the issuance of visas to certain CIA officials by former Ambassador to Husain Haqqani, a new document has surfaced indicating that Mr Haqqani was not solely responsible for the visa issuance to US security and intelligence agency personnel and rather the then Prime Minister, Yousaf Raza Gilani, had authorised Haqqani to issue visas directly.
A letter signed and available with Pakistan Today suggests that via the letter signed by the then Principal Secretary to the PM, Nargis Sethi, on July 14, 2010, Gilani had authorised Haqqani to issue visas. The letter states that under the existing visa policy for official US visitors to Pakistan, the ambassador in Washington is empowered to issue entry visa for restricted periods to US officials who have been recommended in writing by the concerned US authority i.e. department of state and whose duly completed application forms, it is clearly indicated for what purposes they intend to travel to Pakistan.
“The prime minister has been pleased to decide that the ambassador in Washington will be empowered, with immediate effect, to issue visas valid up to one year without the embassy having to refer each such aforementioned visa application to the concerned authorities in Pakistan.” Mr Gilani had recently distanced himself from claims that the government had issued visas to US nationals when he was the Prime Minister.
“The Pakistan embassy in US would issue these visas under intimation to the prime minister’s office in Islamabad,” concludes the letter. Despite repeated efforts to reach out at his cell phone, Gilani chose not to respond.
