A group of Iranian MPs is trying to pass a bill calling for the investigation of top officials of the three branches of government in order to establish a list of those who might have dual citizenship.
Javad Karimi Qodoosi said on Sunday March 1 that the bill has been signed by 10 representatives, the Fars News Agency reports.
On Saturday, one of the signatories of the new bill stressed that this is an initiative to identify the officials in the administration and a number of ministries that have dual citizenship.
Shokrkhoda Mousavi said the ministry of oil and industry is the ministry with the most officials that have green cards. He added that the administration has rejected their allegations that many government officials are holding dual citizenship.
The Ahwaz representative said, however, that one of the senior officials in the president’s office holds dual citizenship. This individual was not named but apparently the reference is to Mohammad Nahavandian, the head of the office of the president.
In 2011, Mahmoudreza Khavari, the head of Melli Bank, Iran’s largest bank, fled to Canada as the judiciary was beginning to link him to a large embezzlement scheme. The prosecutor stressed later that no one was aware that Khavari held dual citizenship at the time he was appointed as the head of Melli Bank.
Iran does not officially recognize dual citizenship.
