Police officers posted away from Punjab after ‘wrangling’

LAHORE: The senior police officers recently surrendered by the Punjab government to the Establishment Division, Islamabad have been given a go-ahead by the prime minister for their new postings/appointments.

Two of them — BS-21 police officer B.A. Nasir and BS-20 officer Zulfiqar Hameed — had served as Lahore Capital City Police Officer (CCPO).

Interestingly, most of the police officers who were ‘expelled’ from Punjab for having soft corner for the PML-N are going to get new postings in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where the PTI is ruling. A few others have been placed at the disposal of the Balochistan government as ‘punishment’ while others get postings in Islamabad.

The government issued transfer orders of the 15 police officers (one serving in BS-21, 10 in BS-20 and four police officers in BS-19). Some police officers were surrendered and relieved from Punjab for serving consecutively more than 10 years in Punjab during the era of the PML-N government.

An official told Dawn that the transfer of these police officers was under consideration for the last many months but the government was delaying it because many officers were using influence to get their transfers cancelled.

Meanwhile, the officer said, an untoward incident happened when 50 police officers in September called an emergent meeting at the Central Police Office in the wake of a clash between the then IGP Punjab Shoaib Dastagir and Lahore CCPO Umar Sheikh. The officers passed a strong-worded resolution against Mr Sheikh and in the support of Mr Dastgair, bringing an embarrassment to Prime Minister Imran Khan as well as the Punjab government.

This act of the officers annoyed the government and prompted it to ‘expel’ some of those police officers who actively participated in the meeting and provoked other colleagues to join them. B.A. Nasir and Zulfiqar Hameed were expelled from Punjab in September and others in October.

According to the notifications issued on Tuesday, Zulfiqar Hameed, the then Special Protection Unit DIG Punjab Bilal Siddique Kamyana, and former SSP investigation Lahore Zeeshan Asghar have been placed at the disposal of the Balochistan government. Two more DIG ranked police officers from KP — Mohammad Saeed and Dr Akhtar Hayat — were also transferred and placed at the disposal of the Balochistan government. These two police officers were leading the two rival groups of the police officers in KP and during their years- long posting in the province were considered influential in the politics of the police community.

The transfer of these two officers was being taken as a major and shocking development in the KP police.

Similarly, former CTO Lahore and SSP Admin Capt Liaqat, the then city police officer Gujranwala Rai Babar Saeed, former Punjab Highway Patrol DIG Humayun Bashir Tarrar and former Punjab welfare DIG Shaukat Abbas have been put at the disposal of the KP government.

The then Punjab Elite Police DIG, Akthar Abbas has been posted as joint secretary human rights division.

Presently serving under KP government, the BS-19 police officer Mansoor ul Haq Rana has been transferred and posted as deputy secretary, state and frontier region division.

Another BS 19 police officer retired Capt Tahir Ayub Khan, presently serving under KP government, has been transferred and placed at the disposal of the FIA.

Presently posted in FC under interior division and on 180 days leave (ex-Pakistan w.e.f July 28, 2020 on half average pay) the BS-20 police officer Rana Abdul Jabbar has been transferred and directed to report to the Establishment Division for further order. The said police officer was suspended and then surrendered to the federal government in the wake of the Model Town tragic incident in which some activists of the Pakistan Awami Tehreek were allegedly killed by police. He was leading the police as DIG Operations Lahore at that time.

B.A. Nasir seems luckiest one as he has been posted as senior joint secretary, railways division.

The then deputy commandant of Punjab constabulary, Inksar Khan Afghan has been placed at the disposal of the FC under the interior division.