ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Chaudhary Nisar Ali Khan on Friday directed all relevant departments to take immediate steps to block bank accounts, financial transactions and all kinds of funding of banned organisations, NGOs and individuals having connection with militants.

This was decided in a special meeting chaired by Nisar to review the implementation of National Action Plan (NAP) on counter-terrorism.

During the meeting, it was decided that all such business activities and bank accounts which are operating without due legal requirements will be blocked as well.

The participants of the meeting decided that over 100 million unverified SIMs would be verified within the next 85 days after which the possessing or sale of any unregistered and unverified SIM will be made a cognisable offence.

“It will help not only in tracking down the unverified SIMs connected with terrorism but also to curb massive grey trafficking which is taking place in the communication sector,” the minister said.

Nisar also asked officials of the Ministry of Information Technology to work in close collaboration with PTA, intelligence agencies and international monitors to close down all terrorism related websites; web based messaging services and other terrorism related material on the internet and social media.

The participants of the meeting decided that bank accounts of Afghan nationals will be filtered by the financial monitoring unit of the Ministry of Finance in coordination with the FIA and intelligence agencies.

All information would be shared with the National Counter Terrorism Authority (Nacta) for scanning all such accounts involved in suspected transactions, the meeting decided.

The minister directed the officials of the CDA to chalk out a detailed plan in consultation with the police and district administration within a week to identify illegal and unregistered Afghan refugees in and around Islamabad in order to facilitate their movement to their camps.

Khan also directed the demolition of all illegally constructed high structures near sensitive installations in Islamabad.

A participant of the meeting told Dawn.com that a data bank and monitoring network is being established for all the proscribed organisations so that “their resurgence secretly or under different names could be shut down” as soon as possible.

The official said the participants held discussions regarding religious seminaries having suspected connections with militants.

It was decided that a final decision on the matter would be taken after the meeting with heads of bodies of all major seminaries of the country on Saturday.

The meeting was attended by Minister of State for IT & Telecom Anusha Rehman Khan, Special Assistants to Prime Minister Khawaja Zaheer and Barrister Zafar Ullah, Federal Secretaries Interior, Finance, Law and Justice and SAFRON, DGs IB and FIA, DG (Counter Terrorism) ISI, NC Nacta, Chairmen FBR, CDA and PTA officials.