ED repatriates services of grade 19 officer to KP

KARACHI: Following the directions of the federal government, the Establishment Division has finally repatriated the services of grade 19 officer Zia-ur-Rehman to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Zia-ur-Rehman is an officer of KP Provincial Management Service (PMS) and brother of JUI-F chief Fazlur Rehman. The Establishment Division had repatriated his services on July 27, but the day it passed the orders, the Sindh government had already posted him as Deputy Commissioner Karachi East and directed him to continue his work in violation of service rules and the Establishment Division’s orders.

Despite the Establishment Division’s orders, Zia Rehman worked as deputy commissioner for 16 days and remained active in the rain emergency areas.

On August 12, Shahid Soomro advocate on behalf of senior PTI leader Haleem Adil Sheikh sent a legal notice to the Sindh chief secretary for the alleged irregular posting of Zia Rehman. Mr. Sheikh told The News that the Sindh government should have immediately acted upon the orders of the federal government.

He warned that if the Sindh government further tried to avoid the ED’s direction, then the federal government would challenge this act of the Sindh government in the Sindh High Court. In this regard, a legal notice was sent to the Sindh chief secretary.

Shahid Soomro told The News that the request for transfer on deputation from another province without showing any exigency for obtaining the service of an officer and without satisfying itself about his qualifications and experience was against the service laws, rules, regulations and the authoritative judgments of superior courts, especially a landmark judgment reported as 2013 SCMR 1752 ( contempt proceedings against Chief Secretary Sindh & others).

Mr. Soomro concluded that it was very strange that the Sindh government had refused to relieve Mr. Zia and he was still posted as deputy commissioner Karachi Central without any lawful authority.

According to official correspondence, copies of which are available with The News, Zia Rehman who had joined the Sindh government in January 2020 was without posting for six months, and on July 23, the Sindh government posted him as the deputy commissioner Karachi Central by transferring Farhan Ghani, an ex-PCS officer.