BAHAWALNAGAR: The Fort Abbas assistant commissioner (AC) was transferred and his driver suspended by the authorities besides initiating inquiries against both after a video of the driver taking bribe on behalf of the AC went viral on social media.

Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Waseem suspended revenue official Azeemullah, the driver of AC Mudassar Arif Khokhar, on Monday and initiated a departmental inquiry against him after some video clips of him demanding and taking bribe for desealing different petrol pumps and fertiliser godowns made the rounds on social media.

The chief secretary also took notice of the viral videos and transferred the AC and directed him to report to the administration wing, S&GAD.

According to the handout issued by the CSP Office on Nov 29, AC Mudassar Arif was transferred on corruption charges. It said the Anti-Corruption Establishment would probe the case of the AC.

The AC during his tenure in Minchinabad was arrested by the ACE in an Rs8m graft case and jailed for several months, when his pre-arrest bail was rejected by the high court on April 16, 2019.

The corruption scandal hit the headlines after media reports upon which an inquiry was initiated on the orders of former ACE DG Hussain Asghar.

KILLED: An elderly rickshaw driver died after his shawl was stuck in the wheel chain of his rickshaw, while a farmer was crushed to death after his tractor overturned in two incidents in Maroot on Tuesday, Rescue 1122 said.

They said that Allah Ditta, 50, rickshaw driver of Chak 328/HR, fell down from his vehicle at about 10:30am when his shawl, wrapped around his neck, got trapped into the chain of rickshaw while driving. As a result, he died.

Also, Tabrez Iqbal, 22, of Chak 308-HR, was ploughing his fields when his tractor overturned. As a result, Tabrez fell down on the ground and was crushed under the wheels of his tractor.

Published in Dawn, December 1st, 2021