GUJRAT: Two men on Thursday allegedly thrashed and tortured the finance officer of Jalalpur Jattan Municipal Committee at his office for ‘resisting to sign some documents’.
Police have booked Jalalpur Jattan MC Chairman Hashim Shah and two other suspects allegedly involved in the case. Ali Hassan, the municipal officer (finance), told police in his written complaint that two armed men namely Qaiser Saleem and Shahzad Butt alias Nona Butt stopped him outside his office and allegedly started thrashing him. He said the suspects continued to pressurise him to sign official documents as per the orders of the chairman. He said on hearing the hullabaloo, chief officer Asrar Chattha also reached the spot and rescued him from the ‘goons’ who [he alleged] were sent by Chairman Hashim Shah.
City Jalalpur Jattan police have registered a case against three nominated suspects including the MC chairman under sections 506ii, 342, 186, 337A (i), 337F(i), 109 and 34 of Pakistan Penal Code on the report of MO Ali Hassan, a resident of Railway Road, Gujrat. However, no arrest could be made so far.
Official sources said the incident had caused a shock among the local government staff and officials took to social media to lodge protest after which LG secretary Noorul Ameen Mengal had to intervene. They said the secretary had talked to the Gujrat deputy commissioner and the district police officer to take legal action against the assailants.
It was learnt that the MO had declined to sign some official documents as per the ‘wish’ of the chairman and the officer had also informed the district administration and the LG secretary in writing about the pressure being exerted on him by the chairman.
The tenure of elected representatives is set to complete by Dec 31 and the staff has been under immense pressure to sign documents prior to the limit.
Hashim Shah had been elected as a councillor on PML-N ticket but later on he along with two other councillors joined the PML-Q to become chairman of Jalalpur Jattan MC in 2016.
Published in Dawn, December 24th, 2021
