Daily Times

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered intelligence agencies to furnish fresh reports of federal officers posted in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa so that those not discharging their duties in accordance with the law could be penalised in the promotion board, whose meeting has been called in an unprecedented haste, media reports said.

The board meeting, which will take place in the first week of December, has been convened at a time when the promotions decided in the previous board held in mid-August have not been notified yet. Instead, the prime minister has ordered reviewing the promotions made in the previous board as well.

A committee will judge officials’ conduct during the ongoing political tensions to see if they acted in accordance with the law or not.

The decision has been taken keeping in view the partisan role of some of the federal officers posted in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the provinces where the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is in the government. The federal government ordered blockade of roads but the officers turned a blind eye towards that.

The Inter-Services Intelligence and Intelligence Bureau have been directed to submit fresh reports, especially of the officers of Pakistan Administrative Services (PAS) and Police Service of Pakistan (PSP) posted in the earlier mentioned two provinces in order to determine the role they played during the current crisis. Those under review are of BS-19 to BS-21. The agencies have been directed to furnish reports till November 22, so that the promotion board could decide in the light of these reports.

Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah has already conveyed in writing the importance of adhering to the Constitution and law by all concerned. “Civil servants are bound to act as servants of the state and their actions should be subservient to the relevant constitutional provisions to ensure smooth conduct of relations between the Federation and the provinces. There should be a defined way of carrying out protests as enshrined in the Constitution and enunciated in various judgments of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. It is equally important to ensure that no government employee be allowed to join any such protest. In view of the aforesaid, it is reiterated that any deviation from the Constitution and laws of the land shall not be allowed at any cost,” reads an office memo issued on October 26 this year by the Interior Ministry.