2 KP officials served ‘fake’ show-cause notices

PESHAWAR: A new case of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) chief minister’s forged signature has surfaced.

It has been claimed that two show-cause notices, issued for removal of BPS-19 officers in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Education Foundation (KPEF), were fake. The mystery is yet to be solved whether notices are genuine or fake.

Sources told this correspondent that the Provincial Inspection Team (PIT) found both officers guilty of misconduct and misuse of authority and sent a report to the chief minister. In response, the CM, being the chairman of the board of directors (BoD), issued show-cause notices to Zahid Hussain and Arif Shah, directing them to respond within a week. However, both officers did not send any reply and claimed that the minutes of KPEF were manipulated by their office colleagues.

Later, the accused officers claimed that the show-cause notices were issued with forged signatures of the CM, and even the minutes of the meeting were fabricated without the signature of competent authority.

When contacted, Zahid Hussain, director of the KPEF, alleged that the show-cause notices were issued with malicious intent to defame the officers and that fake show-cause notices were sent to the Education Foundation. “The show-cause notices are fake. There is no record of these notices at the Chief Minister’s House or the secretary’s office,” the official said. He added that the previous minutes were also fraudulent and lacked the required signature of competent authority.

The managing director, upon reviewing the situation, approved new minutes, discarding the previous inquiry, and the Board would decide to conduct a fresh, impartial inquiry into the matter.

KPEF Managing Director (MD) Fazal-e-Khaliq told this correspondent that the Board had been misled, and the earlier minutes were incorrect. He stated that the actual minutes were currently being prepared and officially issued. He also confirmed that steps were being taken to request a re-inquiry into the case.

The official documents available with this scribe revealed that KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan and Chairman of the Education Foundation, acting under the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Government Efficiency and Discipline Rules of 2011 (as adopted by the KPED), served show-cause notices to the accused officers.

The notices stated that upon completion of an inquiry, conducted by the Provincial Inspection Team, during which the officers were allowed to present their defence, the findings of PIT report were reviewed. After thoroughly considering the evidence and related documents, including the officers’ defences, it was determined that the officers were guilty of inefficiency, misconduct and misuse of authority.

As chairman of the Board of Directors (BoD), the CM tentatively decided to impose penalty of removal from service, along with recovery of misappropriated funds. However, despite the orders signed by the CM for their dismissal, recovery of funds and cessation of two annual increments, no action was taken so far.