Former ACE chief asked to produce record

Allegations against chief secretary

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Thursday asked the former head of the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) to submit the record in the court about his allegations that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief secretary issued his transfer orders after cases were registered against his brother and brother-in-law.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Mazhar Alam Miankhel and Justice Ikramullah heard the writ petition filed by Ziaullah Khan Toru, the former director of the ACE, against his transfer from the post.

The court asked the chief secretary, secretary establishment and deputy commissioner of Peshawar to submit comments before June 14, the next date of hearing of the case.

Ziaullah Toru had claimed that he was transferred after he started investigating the alleged wrongdoing in the “Billion Tree Tsunami Project” of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led provincial government against the brother of the chief secretary. He maintained that he also started investigating the chief secretary’s brother-in-law in another case.

During the hearing, the chief justice observed that though the provincial government had the right to transfer the petitioner under the law, the latter made serious allegations against the chief secretary for issuing his transfer orders after he registered cases against his brother and brother-in-law.

The chief justice asked the petitioner to submit the record in the court about the alleged wrongdoing and corruption of the chief secretary to enable it to judge if malafide intention was the reason of the petitioner’s transfer.

Ziaullah Toru, who is presently serving as deputy director of Provincial Services Academy, had challenged his transfer in the high court and requested it to declare his transfer as null and void.

The petitioner’s lawyer, Qazi Jawad Ihsanullah, stated that his client was an employee of National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and his services were required by the provincial government on deputation. He said he was posted as director ACE on May 19, 2014 and performed his duties with diligence.

He said the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief secretary on May 2 issued his transfer order with malafide intentions.

He claimed his client was transferred when he started inquiry into the purchase and distribution of the “Billion Tree Tsunami Project” on two complaints. He said one was filed by special assistant to the chief minister on environment and the other by residents of Baghdada area in Mardan against the chief secretary’s brother-in-law.

He argued that the petitioner’s transfer notification was issued by the chief secretary as revenge after he started an inquiry into the contracts given to his brother Arshad Ali Khan, a grade-21 officer, and brother-in-law Jawad.

The lawyer said the petitioner has always worked with due diligence and during his posting as director ACE a handsome amount of Rs1.662 billion was recovered and deposited in the exchequer.

He said the petitioner took drastic steps for reforming and restructuring the ACE through an office order issued on April 1, 2016. He said the secretary establishment had sent summary to the competent authority to absorb him in the department on permanent basis on account of his outstanding services.

The petitioner requested the court to suspend the notification till disposal of the petition and direct the respondents not to take any adverse action against him till the final order.

Advocate General Abdul Lateef Yousafzai, Qazi Muhammad Anwar and Barrister Waqar appeared for the respondents and opposed suspension of the order. They argued that the court could decide about the interim relief after hearing the respondents in the case.