The Foreign Secretary said, “It is preposterous to implicate the leadership in the so-called visa scam.” — File Photo

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir on Monday said an inquiry had been ordered into the allegations of the “slander campaign” against the Foreign Ministry, adding it was important to sift the allegation from facts.

“The insinuations contained in these press reports are neither warranted nor justified and are forcefully refuted,” the Foreign Secretary said in a statement issued by the Foreign Office.

The Foreign Secretary said it was preposterous to implicate the leadership in the so-called “visa scam”, which only reflected the evident motivations behind these reports.

He said besides the internal inquiry, the Foreign Ministry would take all other appropriate steps in the matter.

“No matter what personal or political motivations, any attempt to run down an important state institution in the matter that has been done only serves the interests of those inimical to Pakistan and, to say the least, is regrettable,” he said.