LAHORE: In an unprecedented move, the Punjab government extended leave of Chief Secretary Kamran Ali Afzal for one month after midnight on Saturday – without the application submitted by the candidate.

Sources in the secretariat told Dawn that Mr Afzal was adamant that he won’t join the chief secretary’s office and he did not apply for third extension in his “protest leave” too. With regard to the non-submission of the leave extension application and not joining back his office after the conclusion of his leave period, sources claimed that the federal government may declare Mr Afzal ‘absconder’.

The office of the chief secretary had fallen vacant after the look-after charge for Abdullah Khan Sumbal had concluded on Friday evening and he had eventually returned chief secretary office’s official vehicle and did not sign any file.

The PTI-PML-Q’s Punjab government was caught in a ‘catch-22 situation’ as it could not wait more for Mr Afzal’s application and decided to issue leave extension order late on Saturday night.

Afzal didn’t file for extension; CCPO transfer issue in limbo

Sources alleged that principal secretary to the chief minister Muhammad Khan Bhatti had frantically called from London to get Mr Afzal’s leave extension and Abdullah Sumbal’s CS office look-after charge. Both the orders were issued from Oct 8 to Nov 6 leaving all to speculate about the legality of the matter.

Mr Afzal did not respond to the call and WhatsApp message whether he had submitted application for extension in leave or not.

Chief minister’s spokesman Rafiullah also did not respond to the two questions regarding Mr Afzal’s leave extension application and any revised panel sent to the federal government for the posting of a regular chief secretary.

Administrative crisis is deepening in Punjab as Mr Afzal had vociferously conveyed to the federal government that he could not continue working with the incumbent chief minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi as he was not being allowed to make transfers and postings on merit.

In the stopgap arrangement, chief secretary Abdullah Khan Sumbal is not able to use full powers as has been assigned to only look after the day-to-day routine working – causing serious administrative crisis in the province.

In the meantime, the Punjab government is also not relieving Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Lahore Ghulam Mahmood Dogar and has recently responded to the federal government’s reminder that Dogar be surrendered as he needed to face some inquiries. The Punjab government wrote back that the Centre may share complaints and it would inquire into the matter and respond back.

Senior bureaucrats while speaking to Dawn expressed their concern over the Centre and Punjab government wranglings that had ruined the administrative environment in the province. Some senior bureaucrats also expressed their grave concern over transfers and postings after [allegedly] paying hefty bribe to a senior bureaucrat in the province.

Published in Dawn, October 11th, 2022