FAISALABAD, Feb 13: Hundreds of Zakat beneficiaries in the Chiniot district are running from pillar to post for the monetary assistance as the government has failed to constitute over 400 committees for the last three years because of political interference.

It is learnt that the district status given to Chiniot in Feb 2009 has landed Zakat beneficiaries in a difficult situation. After becoming the 36th district of Punjab, the government was bound to induct new Zakat committees for selection and disbursement of funds.

The needy people had been receiving money from Zakat funds smoothly till Chiniot was a tehsil of the Jhang district.

At present three tehsils -- Bhawana, Lalian and Chiniot -- require 431 committees, but the government could not constitute them even after three years which has added to the woes of the poor.

Ordinance 1980 (section 18), local committees are mandatory for disbursement of funds to the needy people. Such committees will ensure assistance to the poor and the needy, particularly orphans, widows, the handicapped and the disabled, eligible to receive Zakat under Shariah for their subsistence or rehabilitation.

Sources said owing to political interference government functionaries were finding it difficult to constitute committees to be elected through elections.

They said that provincial government officials had repeatedly been asked to make some alternative arrangement, but to no avail.

Punjab Zakat and Ushr Minister Nadeem Kamran was also informed about the forming of committees in Chiniot, but the issue is yet to be resolved.

Sources privy to the meeting said the minister had also been suggested alternative means for disbursement of funds among the poor by March otherwise funds would be lapsed.

The minister was informed that elections of committees were not possible before March and administrators should be installed for this purpose.

Like in Chiniot, the dispute over the election of committees is also prevailing in different districts and the Punjab government has yet to set up 2,500 committees. Out of 25,000 committees in Punjab, 22,500 are working in all districts.

Out of 1,387 committees in the Faisalabad district, 28 have also not been elected because of some disputes.

The Punjab government had received Rs2 billion in two installments for Zakat beneficiaries, but residents of Chiniot had not received even a single penny for three years, sources said.

The Punjab government has still not appointed the district chairman of Chiniot.

Zakat officer Yaqoob Jappa said the issue was in the notice of the provincial government and woes of beneficiaries had also been conveyed to the minister.

He said the district Zakat office had released Rs2.1 billion to different vocational training institutes in Chiniot.

He said an amount of Rs13.5 million lying with the district office would lapse by March if it was not disbursed among the needy.