RAWALPINDI: Just over a month from the general elections, some major reshuffling was done in the district administrations across the province. The Rawalpindi commissioner and deputy commissioner were also transferred on Wednesday.

Former secretary irrigation retired Capt Saif Anjum replaced Divisional Commissioner Nadeem Aslam Chaudhry and Deputy Commissioner Talat Mehmood Gondal was replaced with Umar Jehangir.

Appointments on the remaining posts of assistant commissioners and districts administration were not changed and only postings and transfers of officers heading the division and districts were made.

“The reshuffle is just an eye wash as the district administration has no role in electioneering and vote casting as elections are conducted by the judiciary

under the supervision of the Election Commission of Pakistan,” a senior official of the Punjab bureaucracy told Dawn.

He said the bureaucracy was reshuffled in the province and that all commissioners and deputy commissioners were changed to give the impression that the interim government is impartial. However, no officers were brought from outside the province.

Commissioners and deputy commissioners do not support any party and only facilitate the judiciary and the election commission, he said.

“Development work has been stopped, recruitments have been banned for the last three months by the election commission and the district administration is facilitating the judiciary and election commission in conducting the elections,” he said.

A senior official of the district administration told Dawn that the administration also has no authority for transferring votes which is also done by the election commission as per routine.

He said returning officers are appointed from the judiciary and all the administration works under them. It is therefore not possible for the district administration to influence the election process, he argued.

On the other hand, local leaders of political parties say the reshuffling will affect electioneering as heads of administration are appointed on the recommendation of the former ruling party.

PPP City President Babar Jadoon said the administration and police officials should be changed as they can support candidates of the former ruling party.

He said the administration and police will play an affective role in influencing voters and that impartial officials should be appointed from outside the province.

“The current bureaucracy in Punjab is loyal to PML-N as it has facilitated them a lot over the last 10 years,” he said.

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf President Ijaz Khan Jazi said the bureaucracy and police officials should be changed and that they have been asked to not interfere in electioneering as it was being monitored by the election commission.

He said the interim government should bring officials and police officers from other provinces instead of changing officers within Punjab.

Published in Dawn, June 21st, 2018