Two assistant directors of the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) and an agent have been arrested on charges of preparing computerised national identity cards (CNICs) for militants and others for achieving some illegal gains, Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Sindh Director Amir Farooqi said on Thursday.

Speaking at a press conference at his office in Karachi, Farooqi said certain employees of Nadra helped militants linked with the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Al-Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) and proscribed outfits of Baloch sub-nationalist groups to get CNICs in return for some money.

He revealed that an Indian citizen, Imran Ali, who was “involved in the Safoora carnage” was also given a CNIC.

Besides, the suspects involved in the attack on the Chinese consulate in Karachi also got their identity changed.

“The Baloch militant group chief Allah Nazar and others got Nadra’s CNICs. Several employees of Nadra Sindh were involved in helping the terrorists to get the cards,” Farooqi told the media.

The FIA director revealed that “foreign agencies” had breached Nadra’s system and “damaged” it. “Deputy director Nadra and other employees were involved in it,” he added.

Farooqi disclosed that around three to four million “fake“ CNICs were prepared during the last general elections.

He said the fake CNICs had been traced and expressed the hope that the same would be blocked soon.

Some Afghans who got the CNICs have been arrested. “We are trying to further improve Nadra’s software,” he shared.

The FIA director said senior officials in Nadra were involved in this racket. “Postings were managed from the top office to place the officers in Nadra centres which were considered lucrative for making illegal CNICs like [those in] Korangi, Defence etc.,” said Farooqi.

The FIA Sindh chief also revealed that a “network involved in cryptocurrency” had been detected, which was suspected of providing financial support to terrorists.

He said a first information report (FIR) had been registered against one suspect, Noman Siddiqi, who was involved in Bitcoin/cryptocurrency dealings from England and other European countries. The suspect belongs to MQM-London, he added.