SHANGLA: Taking prompt action against illegal deductions made from the money paid to beneficiaries of the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), the district administration on Monday recovered the amounts from retailers and returned them to the stipend recipients.

Following complaints regarding illegal deductions, assistant commissioner, revenue, Kabir Khan on the directives of deputy commissioner Hassan Abid visited the payment points in Alpuri and met the women beneficiaries, according to a statement.

The beneficiaries told the official that the retailers deducted from Rs200 to Rs500 each from them.

AC Kabir said the retailers deducting illegal payments from BISP payments would be blacklisted and their offices would be sealed.

The statement said retailers could not deduct from BISP instalments as they were paid by the BISP for whatever costs they incurred.

POLITICS OVER FLOUR: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa secretary information Shaukat Yousafzai has said instead of controlling runaway inflation the government is resorting to piecemeal measures like free flour distribution, which is causing people more distress as they have to stand in queues for long hours for getting a flour bag.

Talking to journalists in Alpuri, he alleged free flour was being distributed at the hujras of local Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leaders, but the district administration was tight-lipped.

He said there was a conspiracy to divide the judiciary, and warned if the elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were not held within the constitutionally-mandated period, there would be riots in the country.

The former provincial minister said the country wouldn’t have been in such a mess had the Imran Khan’s government not been thrown out.

He said there was no election schedule yet, but the district administration had banned all development works launched by him.

Published in Dawn, April 4th, 2023