LDA official suspended for not releasing salary to employees

LAHORE: Senior management of LDA has suspended a PhD doctor and a senior Grade 18 female officer after she failed to release the salary of over 2,500 employees, including 300 pensioners here on Friday.

However, Hina Rukh claimed that she was victimised as she raised technical objections to the payment of salary to an officer on deputation in Lahore Development Authority (LDA). Dr Hina Rukh, Deputy Director Admin was served a suspension notice, which reads as “Ms Hina Rukh, Deputy Director (General Cadre BS/18-on acting charge basis), LDA presently working as Deputy Director Admin-II and managing affairs of SAP HCM Module in Directorate of Administration, LDA, is hereby placed under suspension with immediate effect on account of inefficiency and misconduct. She is directed to mark her attendance in Directorate of Administration, LDA. Director Finance, LDA will submit list of charges/allegations against the accused officer. This is issued with the prior approval of Director General LDA. Sources said Dr Hina Rukh in her recent noting on release of salary of employees raised a technical point that under Punjab Financial Rules every officer on deputation has to provide Last Pay Certificate (LPC) to the department of posting without which his/her salary can’t be released. She further noted that as per the list provided by AG Office following the orders of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, Shakeel Bhatti, the present Director Finance on deputation, has to pay Rs2,212,256, which he got as excess salary from Saaf Pani Company. Additional Director General (ADG) LDA Rana Abdul Shakoor said that she has no power to stop salary of LDA employees. He said the officer went home without sending the salary of employees to the bank and also directed her staff to go home.

He said the issue was immediately taken up before the LDA DG who directed her suspension as well as holding of an inquiry. Dr Hina Rukh said that she has released the salary of employees in time and the management was victimising her over her stance on the release of salary to Director Admin Shakeel Bhatti. She said there was no provision to release salary of an officer on deputation without his/her LPC.