QUETTA: The Balochistan Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has expressed displeasure over the Levies Force’s failure to submit responses to audit paras and demanded a detailed account of all funds provided to the department and expenditures from 2022 to date.
The committee emphasized that timely submission of audit replies and full financial transparency are essential for accountability. The PAC meeting, chaired by Asghar Ali Tareen, was attended by members Zamrak Khan Achakzai, Ghulam Dastgir Badini, and Wali Muhammad Noorzai, along with Assembly Secretary Tahir Shah Kakar, DG Levies Abdul Ghaffar Magsi, Additional Secretary PAC Siraj Lehri, Additional Secretary Law Saeed Iqbal, Director Audit Balochistan Syed Qadeem Agha, Chief Accounts Officer Syed Idris Agha, and others.
During the meeting, it was revealed that the Levies Force had opened a bank account at the National Bank, Shahrah-e-Iqbal, Quetta, without Treasury approval, holding Rs13.969 million that had not been deposited into the government treasury by the end of the fiscal year. The PAC members termed this a serious violation and ordered the account to be closed immediately with funds transferred to the official treasury, along with evidence submitted to the committee.
The committee also noted that zonal Levies offices, including Quetta, Turbat, Chagai, Loralai, Kalat, and the Levies Training Centre Khuzdar, had not submitted records of expenditures totaling Rs240.80 million to audit officials. Furthermore, purchases of vehicles and rations worth Rs105.099 million during FY 2019-21 were made without open tenders, which the committee termed financial irregularities, directing immediate regularization of these expenses.
Concerns were also raised regarding recruitment practices: although the Levies Force has been merged into the police, recruitment continues only in Chaman and Dera Bugti districts, despite vacant posts and budget allocations for other districts. The committee sought clarification from the department and decided to also involve the chief secretary to address these discrepancies.
The PAC’s strict stance signals a push for transparency, accountability, and proper financial management within the Balochistan Levies Force.