islamabad - An officer, recently transferred from Narowal district, the home town of Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, to Islamabad Capital Territory, has been assigned the charge of four different offices under the Interior Division simultaneously, The Nation has learnt.

Former DCO Narowal, Syed Najaf Iqbal, a Punjab Civil Services (PCS) cadre officer was transferred and posted as Director (Admin), ICT under the Interior Division, a BS-19 post, soon after Ahsan Iqbal took charge as Interior Minister a few months back. Immediately after assuming office, he assigned himself additional charge of Chief Metropolitan Officer (CMO) in Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI), a BS-20 post also under the Interior Division. It is to mention here that the PCS officer is in BS-18.

Najaf grabbed two more offices falling under the Interior Division in the wake of a recent reshuffle in the ICT administration on 24 April 2018.

According to two separate Office Orders issued by the Chief Commissioner Office on April 25, he was given charge of the vacant posts of Director Agriculture Extension Services, ICT and Commissioner (Social Security) Islamabad Employees Social Security Institute, ICT, Islamabad in addition to his own duties, making it a total of four offices in which he is simultaneously holding charge.

According to sources in MCI, Najaf wanted to be appointed as CMO in MCI but the new post has no defined salary and service structure.

He, therefore, got posted as Director (Admin) in ICT administration first and then got additional charge of the CMO MCI office. They said that holding the two offices simultaneously is a case of conflict of interest. Normally, a PCS officer is not given one step above charge, they contended.

They said that it is not appropriate to hold a position in MCI when holding office in ICT administration as conflict of interest may mar the performance of the officer. Although both offices come under the Interior Division, horizontal distribution of charges is not possible. Last week, Chief Justice of Pakistan had suspended Prof Uzma Qureshi, the vice chancellor of Lahore College for Women University for Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal’s alleged role in her appointment. Syed Najaf Iqbal had been in the news for his alleged corrupt and fraudulent practices in recent past during his posting in Punjab. According to a report published in media in September 2016, an inquiry was started under the PEEDA Act, 2006 against six senior officials, including former Narowal DCO Syed Najaf Iqbal for misconduct, inefficiency, corrupt and fraudulent practices in the procurement of furniture for schools in Narowal district. The accused were members of the district purchase committee in 2014.

The Punjab Education secretary had, on receiving complaints regarding corruption and malpractices in the purchase of furniture, ordered an inquiry on the direction of the chief minister. The ex-DCO had allegedly got transferred funds given to the school management councils for the purchase of furniture to the DPC constituted by him as chairman. As per complaints, the committee had violated rules and regulations for prequalification of firms and selected a firm of its choice for supply of furniture at a very high price.

The ex-DCO and other members of the committee had been found guilty in the initial inquiry, according to the media reports. According to another media report published in 2015, “Pak-German Company”, dealing in electrical parts had alleged that Punjab Procurement Regulatory Authority’s (PPRA) former Deputy Director Najaf Iqbal, officers of Lahore Development Authority Shabana Najaf and Faisal Farid committed corruption to the tune of Rs72 million during execution of the Lahore Metro Bus Service project.

Counsel for the company, the petitioner, had told a Lahore High Court division bench that the accused officers misused their powers and received millions of rupees from the petitioner, the company as illegal gratification.

The company had supplied different electrical equipment for the project.

In another Office Order issued by the Chief Commissioner Office on April 27, Bilal Azam System Analyst (BS-18) of Excise and Taxation Department, ICT was allowed to look after the work of the post of Director Excise and Taxation, ICT in addition to his own duties after Director Excise and Taxation Ms. Mariam Mumtaz Butt, a BS-18 officer of Pakistan Administrative Services was removed from her post on April 24.

According to the officials at the Interior Ministry, Bilal Azam is a system analyst and cannot be posted against a cadre post. “It is like Director IT of Islamabad police (BS-19) is posted as SSP because both are in BS-19”, commented a senior official at the interior ministry. Earlier, in a major reshuffle on April 24, the Establishment Division transferred some of the officers from ICT administration.  The Establishment Division issued separate notifications to transfer Director Labour and Industries ICT, Director AES and Director Excise and Taxation, Islamabad.

Meanwhile, the ICT administration transferred Mazhar Hussain (BS-17) who was working as Circle Registrar Cooperative Societies, Islamabad and directed to report to Deputy Commissioner Office, Islamabad. According to the sources, some citizens had complained to the authorities about his negative role as the Circle Registrar which caused his transfer.