The Sindh government reinstated Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Syed Pir Muhammad Shah as the chief of the Karachi Traffic Police, it emerged on Saturday.

According to a notification issued by the provincial government on Friday, Shah’s posting relieves Sindh’s Central Police Office Headquarters DIG Mazhar Nawaz Shaikh of his additional charge “with immediate effect”.

“Syed Pir Muhammad Shah … is posted as Deputy Inspector General of Police, Traffic, Karachi, relieving Mr. Mazhar Nawaz Shaikh, an officer of PSP (BS-20) Deputy Inspector General of Police, Headquarters, Central Police Office, Sindh from the additional charge of the post,” the notification stated.

A copy of the notification is available with Dawn.

Shaikh was transferred and posted as the new traffic police chief after the government removed Shah as the chief of Karachi traffic police at the end of January.

While last month’s notification was silent about the reasons behind DIG Shah’s removal, informed sources told Dawn that Inspector General of Police (IGP) Javed Alam Odho had sought an explanation from him regarding allegations of “misuse of authority” in the registration of a case in Hyderabad last year, allegedly on his instructions.

Dawn reached out to the Sindh home minister and the provincial police chief for comments on whether the allegations of misuse of authority against Shah had proven to be false. However, neither responded to the requests.