Foreign Ministry had sent a two-member team to Barcelona and Madrid to probe the case.

ISLAMABAD   -   A senior Pakistani diplomat and Consul General of Paki­stan in Spanish city of Barce­lona, Mirza Salman Baig, has been sacked from his position on sexual harassment charges levelled by a local staffer of the consulate, credible sources said yesterday.

The sources told The Na­tion that the name of the staff­er, which is not being disclosed, lodged the complaint with Pa­kistani Ambassador Shujat Ra­thore in Madrid, who later re­ferred the matter to Foreign Office in Islamabad for further investiga­tion.

The For­eign Min­istry sent a two-mem­ber team to Barcelona and Madrid to probe the case. They complet­ed the investigation, on the basis of which the Foreign Of­fice removed the officer from his position and recalled him to the headquarters in Islam­abad, where he is facing disci­plinary proceedings.

According to more details, the victim who was hired local­ly also filed the complaint with the Spanish justice department which contacted the Pakistan Ambassador in Spain.

In her complaint, she alleged that the counsel general used to send her messages through social media, which, she claimed, were harassment. She in her complaint also claimed that the officer tried to make sexual assault on her in a hotel in Barcelona.

Mirza Salman Baig during the interrogation, however, de­nied the charges against him and disclosed that he wanted to sack her (the complainant), which was why she turned against him.

The Nation tried to contact the Foreign Ministry spokes­person and Pakistani Ambas­sador to Spain Shujat Rathore, but there was no response from both of them till the filing of the report.

The sources said if Salman Baig is proved guilty during the disciplinary proceedings in the Foreign Office, he would face termination from service.

Mirza Salman Babar Baig started his diplomatic career in 2003. He has served in Germa­ny, Serbia, Australia and Japan as a diplomat.

At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Pakistan, he has looked after various desks dealing with Europeans af­fairs, United Nations, Organi­sation of Islamic Conference, Japan and Korea.

He was last posted as Di­rector General in the office of Speaker of National Assembly of Pakistan.