Caretaker home, mineral ministers to enjoy security even after end of interim govt

The Provincial Threat Assessment Committee (PTAC) has decided to provide additional security to the two caretaker ministers, including the caretaker home minister, and his personal staff officer (PSO).

The additional security to the ministers would continue after the end of their ministerial tenures.

The committee also decided to provide security to incumbent Home Secretary lqbal Memon irrespective of his posting, agriculturist Muhammad Khan Gabol, who according to the official correspondence is working with foreign missions on restoration and preservation of mangroves forest, all retired judges of the Supreme Court and Sindh High Court, all retired police officers, bureaucrats and serving provincial additional secretaries of grade 19.

According to the minutes of the meeting, a copy of which is available with The News, Caretaker Home Minister Brig (retd) Haris Nawaz will additionally be provided with one police escort comprising 12 police officials for two shifts for his security and this security arrangement shall continue after he seizes his office as the caretaker minister after the general elections.

This security will be provided due to threat alert presented by the Special Branch as he could be a target of miscreants for policy decisions regarding illegal immigrants repatriation, action against land grabbers, drug traffickers and katcha operation.

The committee also decided that the present security to Khuda Bux Marri, caretaker minister for Sindh mines and minerals department, would continue and additionally, he would be provided with one police escort comprising eight police officials for two shifts for his security which would continue after he seized his office as the caretaker minister.

Gabol, an agriculturist who is working with foreign missions on restoration and preservation of mangroves forest, would be provided with one police escort comprising eight police officials for two shifts at his residence for security.

The present security to Memon, an officer of PAS presently posted as additional chief secretary Sindh home department, would continue and he shall additionally be provided with four more police guards at his residence irrespective of his posting.

The committee also assessed threats to caretaker home minister’s PSO Ahmed Faisal Chaudhry, an officer of the Police Service of Pakistan (PSP), and decided to provide him four police guards for security by virtue of his rank and due to the fact that he faced threats similar to those being faced by the home minister as he served as his PSO throughout the tenure. His security would continue irrespective of his postings.

Jameel Baig, a noteable, would be provided with two police guards.

The caretaker home minister told The News that the committee had decided to provide him security even after his tenure in the light of intelligence reports as during his tenure, many actions were taken against terrorists, dacoits of katcha area and drugs dealers.

Responding to a question, he said that even after retirement, any government functionary could be a potential target, which was why the committee had decided to provide security to him and others.

A meeting of the PTAC was held on January 16, 2024, under the chairmanship of the caretaker home minister who is the chairman of the committee. The minutes of the meeting were issued on January 24, 2024, which said that in addition to the aforementioned decisions, intelligence reports and threat alerts received from intelligence agencies in respect of other individuals would also be placed before the committee for a decision.

The committee decided that necessary police security to individuals and places wherever and whenever required would be provided as per authorisation already fixed by the Sindh government and scale of the threat endorsed by the Divisional Threat Assessment Committee concerned.

The home department additional chief secretary remarked that decisions taken by the PTAC to close, reduce, maintain or increase the already provided security would strictly be implemented in letter and spirit.

The Special Security Unit commandant and AIG operations of the Sindh police briefed the PTAC that decisions taken in its last meeting on November 13, 2023, had been implemented in letter and spirit and security found in excess of the Sindh government’s policy had been withdrawn.

They also informed the meeting that all serving judges of the Supreme Court, Sindh High Court, and district and sessions judges were being provided adequate security and no security had been withdrawn from any member of the minority community as well as from places of worship.