PESHAWAR, Dec 13: The caretaker federal and provincial governments are keeping on the sideline several senior officials who had been made Officers on Special Duty (OSD). Citing an example, official sources said the establishment division had issued transfer orders of Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Hazara Range, Rao Amin Hashem, on Sept 5 and directed him to immediately report to the federal government.

However, the provincial government of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal directed the grade 20 officer from the Police Service of Pakistan not to relinquish the charge.

Usually, the federal government requests a province to relieve an officer whose services are required at another place and his further posting is possible only when the province relieves him.

According to sources, former chief minister Akram Khan Durrani had contacted former prime minister Shaukat Aziz and pleaded that the NWFP was facing a shortage of senior police officers and the transfer orders should be withdrawn.

Amid the controversy, the officer continued serving on his post in line with the directives of the provincial government till its departure on Oct 10.

Soon afterwards, the caretaker provincial government surrendered the officer and directed him to report to the establishment division on Oct 27. Since then, he is serving as an OSD at the establishment division.

Several officers from the District Management Group (DMG) and the Provincial Civil Services (PCS) were made OSDs by the MMA government but the caretaker set-up is not taking any steps for their posting.

Aurangzeb Haq, a grade 20 DMG officer, was removed from the post of special secretary, finance, reportedly over differences with the former chief minister. He has been serving as an OSD since Aug 16.

Khalid Khan Umerzai, a grade 20 officer from the PCS, was also made an OSD and his promotion was blocked.

The caretaker government granted him promotion on Nov 3 from grade 19 to grade 20 but he has not been posted despite the fact that several senior positions in the province are vacant or held by other officers on a temporary basis.