BAHAWALPUR: The Punjab Health Department has suspended from service the Bahawal Victoria Hospital (BVH) medical superintendent for “misconduct, inefficiency and being involved in bogus appointments at BVH”.

The Punjab secretary Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Department has issued notification which says, “Dr Rao Javed Akhtar, medical superintendent BVH, Bahawalpur, is hereby placed under suspension under section 6 of PEEDA Act 2006 on account of misconduct, inefficiency and being involved in the fake/bogus appointments in BVH, Bahawalpur with immediate effect and directed to report to specialized healthcare and medical education department.”

The notification added that additional MS Dr Tahira Parveen had been entrusted the additional charge of the post of medical superintendent.

Quaid-i-Azam Medical College Chief Executive Officer Prof Dr Syed Ijlal Haider Rizvi confirmed to Dawn the issuance of the suspension notification of Dr Rao Javed Akhtar.

Mr Akhtar was elevated to the post of MS from additional medical superintendent (AMS) last year.

After assuming the charge, he had claimed to have unearthed a scandal of about 41 bogus appointments on the administrative seats during the previous years.

These appointments were allegedly made through fake appointment letters and bogus degrees.

On the other hand, the sacked employees protested to the government and alleged that they had paid for the appointments.

The government had also started a probe into the claims of the sacked employees of greasing the palms of officials for the fake appointment letters.

Published in Dawn, May 19th, 2017