KARACHI: The provincial police department has been directed to file a statement in a petition seeking the termination of 44 superintendents of police (SPs) alleged to have been politically appointed by the Pakistan Peoples Party government in 1996. A retired deputy superintendent of police has gone to the court questioning the appointments and promotions of 44 police officers reportedly appointed for three months as a stop-gap arrangement. When the matter came up for hearing on Monday, the provincial law officer requested the court for some time to seek instructions from the authorities for filing response to the petition. A two-member bench while granting some time directed the law officer to ensure the presence of the officer concerned from the police department on the next hearing and to also file a statement on behalf of 44 SPs named as respondents in the petition. The 44 SPs who have been cited as respondents included Haseeb Afzal Baig, Mohammad Ali Wassan, Javed Zamir Farooqi, Zulfiqar Ali Talpur, Ghulam Sarwar Bhayo, Ali Sher Jakhrani, Ashiq Ali Buzdar, Jan Mohammad Brahmani, Khalid Mustafa Kori, Farida Bano Leghari, Pir Syed Ahmed Tariq Shah, Abid Hussain Qaimkhani, Jam Zafarullah Dherajo and Aijaz Ali Shah. Petitioner Maqsood Ahmed alleged that 105 DSPs were appointed in the period from 1974 to 2003 on ad hoc basis, without adopting the due procedure under the relevant laws. The provincial government had appointed the 44 DSPs (BS-17) directly without involving Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC) in selection process. However, these appointments should have been made through the commission under the law. He told the judges that in 1997, the then IG Syed Mohib Asad had written a letter to the then home secretary seeking termination of these police officers for having been appointed on pure political basis. Apart from this, they were sent to Islamabad academy for training for nine months by the provincial government. At the end of training they took examination. To his utter shock, the petitioner said, all the trained police officers failed except Qamar Raza Jaskani. Subsequently, the training academy’s head wrote a letter to the then IG Sindh, informing him that all the failed police officers could be given another opportunity of taking exam afresh within the period of three months. But the officers did not appear in the exams but rather they were given posting orders. Maqsood further stated that the DSPs were promoted to the next ran of SP latter and inducted in the police service of Pakistan cadre, thus spreading ‘the cancer’ across the country so they can be transferred and appointed in other provinces. He maintained that these 44 DSPs should have been terminated from the services in the largest interest of the country. The petitioner argued that the way the police officers were appointed and later promoted caused deep frustration among the other civil servants, who are being meted out discriminatory treatment in violation of the their right granted under Article 4, 9, 18 and 38 of the constitution. “Maladministration, malfeasance and malpractices on the part of the authorities erode the concept of good governance, are causing deep frustration among the bureaucracy,” he said while requesting the court to direct the authorities concerned to terminate the services of above-mentioned officers.