TOBA TEK SINGH: Dozens of employees of Zakat and Ushr Department, who are being paid their salaries from Zakat funds, staged a demonstration on Wednesday outside the press club to press the government to accept their demands.

They were led by All Pakistan Clerks Association district president Syed Shahid Naqi who told reporters that there had been more than 2,000 temporary employees in the department in Punjab for the last 35 years who were being paid their salaries from Zakat money collected from the account holders of banks. He said Rs396 million of Zakat funds were being spent on salaries.

He demanded that the government regularise them so that their salaries are paid from government funds. He also demanded upgrading employees of basic pay scales from 1 to 16 to next scales.

Published in Dawn, March 23rd, 2017