November 07, 2008	Friday	Ziqa'ad 8, 1429

KARACHI, Nov 6: A senate committee has rejected a report on out-of-turn-promotions in the Sindh police, found serious irregularities in the department and demanded a detailed report from the provincial government on the issue within 15 days.

Sources said senior officials from the Sindh government briefed the Senate’s Standing Committee on the Interior on Thursday, which met to discuss several issues relating to security, law and order and performance of the law enforcement and other agencies.

“The meeting also raised a point regarding the out-of-turn-promotions mainly in the Sindh police,” said a source, citing discussion of the meeting held in Islamabad. “Senior officials from the Sindh home ministry placed an initial report before the 11-member committee, which suggested that there were only seven police officers who were given out-of-turn promotions.”

However, he said, the senators rejected the report and came up with facts which reflected large-scale irregularities in the department and led to promotions of several officers mainly backed by political parties and personalities.

The chairman of the Standing Committee on the Interior, Mohammad Talha Mahmood Aryan, confirmed told Dawn the Senate body’s action on such lines and said that the officers awarded out-of-turn-promotions would be reverted to their previous positions once the Sindh government came up with a detailed report.

“The committee has shown its no-confidence in the Sindh government’s report that says there are only seven such officers,” he told Dawn. “The figures are much higher than claimed by the Sindh government. So we have asked the Sindh home secretary to prepare a final report within 15 days, containing details of every single officer promoted in the caretaker and present setups, and present it before the committee and then we will take this matter up at our next sitting, due after five weeks.”

The question mark put by the Senate’s committee over the Sindh police promotions may fuel fresh resentment among the police hierarchy. The issue has been raised several times in the provincial assembly, but it did not inspire the authorities to remedy the anomalies. However, a top official in the Sindh police admitted that there had been “some complaints of out-of-turn promotions” and a provincial-level body had been assigned to look into the matter.

“There has been no such inquiry into the matter,” said Sindh IG Sultan Salahuddin Babar Khattak. “A committee was set up for deliberations on the subject and it has completed the task.”

As the IG admitted that in some cases out-of-turn-promotions had been awarded to police officers, a fresh debate on the subject at the federal level might lead to lobbying and use of influence from the quarters concerned to stall such a move. But the senators appear confident to face the challenge.

“We realise that the out-of-turn-promotions in the Sindh police are backed by political parties or influential individuals,” said Mr Aryan, chairman of the Standing Committee on the Interior. “The committee has discussed such a reaction at length and after that decided to take up the matter. We are not going to ignore this issue and seeking demotion of officers obliged out of way.”He said Sindh stood out in that type of irregularities, as no such case had been reported in the Pubjab police, and a very few complaints registered in the NWFP.

“The ultimate solution to the problem will not only lead to reforms in the Sindh police, but also discourage elements from influencing the department for the promotions of their men,” he said. “Otherwise, it will not only discourage competent officers, but also make such a practice a merit to progress in a very sensitive profession.”