KANDAHAR: A senior Afghan police official regarded as one of the country’s most powerful men has banned the use of Pakistani rupee in the Kandahar province. The police chief of Kandahar, Gen Abdul Raziq, said he had declared the use of rupee in business transactions a crime. But he says he hasn’t yet decided on the punishment. The rupee has been widely used in Afghanistan’s eastern and southern provinces bordering Pakistan. The Iranian currency is used in the western border provinces. “I’m not against business, but I don’t want any other currency to be used in our country, especially the Pakistan and Iranian currencies,” Raziq said on Sunday. Raziq’s ban came into effect last week. Traders said it had an immediate effect.