Over 5000 arms licences issued in KP on forged letters

PESHAWAR: A major scandal has surfaced in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Home Department’s arms licence branch, where over 5,000 licences were allegedly issued in 2023 using forged official authority letters.

According to department sources, arms licences were issued in connivance with the department’s insiders, using fabricated authority documents issued by fake employees of various government bodies. Several manual licences were also converted into digital cards based on bogus paperwork.

The licences included permits for 9mm pistols, 30-bore weapons, shotguns, and G3 rifles — normally issued for Rs23,000 under standard procedure. However, under the guise of “government category” licences, these were issued for just Rs300 using fake authority letters.

This malpractice has reportedly caused a loss of Rs140 million to the provincial exchequer.

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Sources in the Finance Department revealed that bribes ranging from Rs40,000 to Rs60,000 were also extorted from applicants. In many cases, licence entries were duplicated in the database by simply altering CNIC numbers — allowing double issuance without payment. Even licences in the names of security personnel were allegedly issued using forged documents.

The scam is said to extend beyond KP, with residents of Punjab and Sindh also having received arms licences on fake letters.

In 2023, out of 30,000 total licences issued, 12,000 were issued under government categories — raising red flags.

Additional Chief Secretary for Home Abid Majeed acknowledged receiving complaints related to forged documents under the old manual system. “Some of the suspected letters are being sent to relevant departments for verification,” he said, adding that a full inquiry and audit of old records would be conducted.

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He confirmed that the system was fully digitised after 2024, and no such irregularities could now occur. “If any entries or documents are proven fake, the respective licences will be cancelled,” he added.