Chaman DC maltreats election officer

ISLAMABAD: In a unique case of alleged illegal detention of its District Election Commissioner (DEO) and beating him up, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Thursday summoned the Balochistan police chief, DC Chaman/Qilla Abdullah and municipal corporation chairman to appear before it on July 6.
Taking action on an application filed by DEO Chaman/Qila Abdullah Imtiaz Ahmad Shahid, the electoral body asked the inspector general of police, Balochistan, DC and chairman Chaman Municipal Corporation to also bring affidavits containing their reply to the complaint filed by Imtiaz Ahmad.
In the notice sent on Thursday to these officials, the ECP made it clear if they failed to turn up, the matter would be decided ex-parte. The subject of the notice is: Illegal confinement of DEO, Qilla Abdullah.
In the application/report, a copy of which is available with The News, the DEO said that on June 29, Chaman Station House Officer (SHO) Gul Muhammad Awan came to his office and informed him that Chaman Deputy Commissioner Naeem Bazai wanted to see him in his office.
The DEO said he accompanied the police officer to the office of the deputy commissioner. On reaching his office, the deputy commissioner rudely asked him why he did not visit him despite he had sent for him many times.
At this, Imtiaz Asked asked the deputy commissioner when exactly he had sent for him and wanted to know in what tone he was talking to him and that he (Imtiaz) was not his subordinate. “I am the deputy commissioner and all the district officers are my subordinates and they should listen to me,” the DEO quoted the deputy commissioner as asking him. To this, Imtiaz contended that he was not his subordinate, as the ECP is an independent constitutional body.
During this, he (Bazai) telephoned the chairman of Chaman Municipal Corporation Salahuddin, who had already warned him (Imtiaz) of dire consequences on phone.
The deputy commissioner told him on the phone that he should listen how he was disgracing and grilling the DEC. The deputy commissioner used abusive language against Imtiaz. Then Bazai asked his Levies staffers to arrest Imtiazand beat him up. The Levies personnel took him away to their lock-up, frisked him and took away his mobile phone and used foul language against him.
After keeping him in the lock-up for about two hours, the Levies personnel left him at the police station. During all these events, he could not manage to contact any high-up.However, after some efforts, he somehow managed to contact the deputy director Abdul Wahid, from someone’s mobile phone. At 9:00pm, the SHO dropped back Imtiaz at his office on a government vehicle.
In the complaint, Imtiaz alleged the deputy commissioner transgressed his official powers, abused him and he was beaten up by the Levies and kept him in illegal confinement.The DEO said he felt threatened by the deputy commissioner, the municipal corporation chairman and the SHO and that he was also reporting it to the Balochistan Election Commissioner.