FAISALABAD, May 1: Police have locked horns with the City District Government of Faisalabad (CDGF) administration over the expenditures incurred on security of President Pervez Musharraf during his visit to the city on Feb 17, Dawn has learnt.

The district administration has refused to pay Rs656,411 to police which it claimed had spent on security arrangements.

The president during his visit addressed a public gathering at the heavily-guarded Iqbal Stadium where beside deployment of heavy contingents of police and army personnel, 15 walkthrough gates were installed.

The gate installation cost Rs115,000 and an Islamabad-based company provided the gadgets.

Sources said the Finance Department through a notification, W&M-1-31/2006-2007, released Rs18 million to the city district government in advance for the most VIP visit.

According to the notification, Rs8 million were allocated for transportation, Rs2 million fuel, Rs3 million stage, Rs3 refreshment, Rs1 million for security and Rs1 million for miscellaneous charges.

The Finance Department ordered the district government to use funds for the purposes mentioned in the notification.

Sources said Rs18 million allocated by the Finance Department tantalised police to demand security and other expenditures.

Sources said police had submitted a total bill amounting Rs656,411, which included Rs390,000 for food, Rs65,000 tenting, Rs5,600 stationary charges and Rs195,811 for fuel.

Dawn investigation reveals that police bill more than that it spent on the visit.

In its bill for food, police demand Rs390,000 for 7,800 packets of rice and one packet casts Rs45. An ordinary arithmetic-literate knows that 7,800 packets of rice and each costing Rs45, will cost Rs351,000 in all and not that Rs390,000. It seems the bill was prepared in a hurry as the price of a rice plate is mentioned Rs450 instead of Rs45 in the bill.

The cook who provided rice packets to police said 8,000 rice packets would cost not more than Rs170,000 if the price of rice was viewed in accordance with open market.

Sources said police were convinced to bill such a heavy amount because they had supplied fuel to policemen from other districts who had come to Faisalabad for the president’s visit.

The bill shows that Elite Lahore got Rs14,818 as fuel charges, Lahore Central Police Office Rs4,024, Farooqabad Punjab Constabulary Rs567, Jhang Rs2,268, Toba Tek Singh Rs756, Bahawalpur Rs2,268, Bahawalnagar Rs17,010, Gujranwala Rs28,161, Sialkot Rs12,096, Gujrat Rs9,261, Mandi Bahauddin Rs4,941, Hafizabad Rs1,512, Narowal Rs567, Sargodha Rs12,663, Bhakkar Rs3,402, Khushab Rs4,725, Mianwali Rs4,990, Multan Rs30,204, Khanewal Rs6,426, Sahiwal Rs3,780, Vehari Rs8,127, Lodhran Rs1,890, Sheikhupura Rs5,216, Nankana Sahib Rs5,405, Kasur Rs8,430 and Okara Rs2,268.

A senior police officer said his department had spent money on the visit from its welfare funds.

A city district government officer requesting anonymity said his department had refused to release any sum for security arrangements.

“We ask police officials to approach the inspector general (IG) of police office to get their charges reimbursed. A bill forwarded to the by the police to the IG office has also been returned,” he said. He said the city district government had never paid expenditure for security.

DIG (operations) Mohammad Aslam Tareen admitted the district administration had raised objections to the bill submitted by police.

He said police would forward the bill to the IG office if the district administration rejected it. He said earlier the district government had released budget if demanded by the police, however, this time they had refused.

He said the district police had provided fuel to the vehicles of other ranges used for security. About food charges, he said it would be a clerical mistake that police forwarded billed Rs390,000 instead of Rs351,000.