Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry formally asked the government on Thursday to clarify its position on reported allegations against Mr Rana. According to sources, when the government approached the Supreme Court to administer oath to Mr Rana, the court wrote a letter instead to the Prime Minister Secretariat seeking clarification of alleged charges against the appointee.

Article 168 (2) of the Constitution states: “Before entering upon office, the auditor general shall make before the Chief Justice of Pakistan oath in the form set out in third schedule.”

Being a constitutional position, the new auditor general has to take oath administered by the CJP.

Later speaking at an Iftar dinner hosted for media personnel, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said: “We have received a letter from the SC chief justice in which he has sought clarification on certain charges levelled against the new auditor general by some anonymous people to which the government will respond.”

He said those challenging the appointment of Mr Rana were trying “to put the cart before the horse” because he was the most senior officer available in the audit and accounts group and throughout his career he had never faced any charge of corruption.

“What else I should consider before filling a position,” Mr Gilani said. “Whether you describe it as a good luck or bad luck, the officer hails from Multan (and) that is the sole reason he is being targeted.”

The prime minister also belongs to Multan.

He said after the Supreme Court last year’s order the government was following a certain criterion to promote officers, to which nobody should have any objection.

Mr Rana allegedly keeps more than one national identity card and a foreign passport. The government said there was no bar on a civil servant to secure more than one nationality. About the allegation of holding two identity cards, the government said it was baseless.

An internal departmental inquiry has exonerated Mr Rana from the charges of sexual harassment verbally levelled by a woman colleague.

Public Accounts Committee Chairman Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, who opposed Mr Rana’s appointment, has also referred to these charges.

KARACHI OPERATION: Prime Minister Gilani said his government was ready to pay any political price to bring the killers of innocent citizens in Karachi to justice. He said a decision had been taken to launch an across-the-board operation in nine selected areas of the city. The government, he added, would take every possible measure to restore peace in Karachi.

In reply to a question about reported cases of corruption against his government and non-implementation of SC judgments, Mr Gilani said first of all his government was accountable to the two houses of parliament and then to the people of Pakistan who could filter out anybody through polls.

Another accountability forum, he said, was the Public Accounts Committee which had recovered billions of rupees over the past three years. “What do you think, can PAC work so well without my cooperation.”

Asked about the alleged corruption charges against his son Abdul Qadir Gilani, the prime minister said the apex court had cleared him. About Monis Elahi, one of the main accused in the NICL scam case, he said let the court decide.

In reply to a question about demands for a new province in southern Punjab, he said: “Whether somebody likes it or not, I will respond to the call of people.”