KARACHI, Pakistan — The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) shifted Assistant Sub-Inspector Munawar Mehdi from immigration counter work to a sanitation oversight assignment at Jinnah International Airport Saturday, according to official orders and airport officials. Officials said the Karachi airport reassignment followed an internal inquiry and effectively removes him from future immigration check-post postings, though the findings were not made public, Jan. 3, 2026.
Karachi airport posting follows internal inquiry
According to The Express Tribune, Mehdi was posted to the deputy director’s office and tasked with administrative supervision of washroom cleanliness, pest-control measures and sewerage maintenance in coordination with airport management.
The written order, described by ProPakistani, instructs the officer to file a signed cleanliness report every hour, oversee pest-control operations along sewerage and washroom lines connected to the immigration area, and flag suspected routes used by rats and other pests.
Neither the FIA nor airport management publicly released the inquiry report or detailed the allegations against the officer. Airport sources said the posting was framed as an administrative step aligned with the inquiry’s recommendation that he not be deployed at an immigration check-post.
Accountability and pressure on immigration operations
The unusual Karachi airport reassignment comes as the FIA says it is stepping up internal discipline and scrutiny at airport counters. In a Dec. 24 report, Dawn said the agency punished officials in cases involving corruption, abuse of authority and negligence, including action linked to illegal immigration clearances at airports. “Strict action is being taken against officials involved in illegal activities,” Director General Riffat Mukhtar Raja said, according to the report.
Separately, a 2025 government statement said Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi tasked the FIA leadership with developing a strategy against illegal immigration and ordered a nationwide crackdown on human trafficking networks, according to a press release from the Press Information Department.
Older reports show Karachi airport hygiene and enforcement challenges
Sanitation and pest problems at Karachi airport have disrupted operations before. In September 2023, Aaj English TV reported that an immigration system outage was initially blamed on rats chewing an internet cable, while civil aviation officials said there was no evidence that rats caused the malfunction.
At the same time, Karachi airport immigration counters have remained a focal point for enforcement against illicit travel. In December 2024, the FIA said it offloaded a passenger and uncovered a wider trafficking network during follow-up questioning, according to a 2024 Tribune report on a human trafficking case.
For travelers, the latest reassignment highlights two recurring Karachi airport pressures: maintaining basic facilities in high-traffic areas and ensuring immigration screening is handled by trained, accountable officials. The FIA has not said whether similar sanitation postings will be used in future internal cases or when the inquiry findings will be made public.
