LAHORE: The Punjab government has appointed a junior police officer as DIG Operations in Lahore besides making transfers and postings of seven other police officers serving in BS-20.

Punjab Highway and Patrol Rawalpindi SSP Sajid Kyani has been transferred and posted new DIG Operations in Lahore vice Ashfaq Ahmad Khan who has been appointed Sargodha RPO against an existing vacancy.

The RPO slot had fallen vacant after the transfer of Afzaal Kausar who had been posted DIG Operations, Islamabad after the police chief of the federal capital sent his requisition against the slot in question.

An official privy to the development said Mr Kayani was said to be well-connected in the Punjab’s political elite and his posting being SSP against BS-20 slot has raised many eyebrows. He was among the police officers who were promoted to the rank of DIG in January this month but his notification was yet to be issued.

The BS-20 slot which deals with operational matters and is heavily burdened with law and order assignments requires an experienced police officer.

The official said the posting of the police officer a few weeks after his promotion in the city of massive challenges where he had never served was being taken as ‘an adventure’ rather a mature decision.

There are reports that Lahore Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Ghulam Dogar was not taken on board for the posting of the DIG.

The Punjab government preferred Sajid Kyani to experienced police officers of BS-20, leaving a question mark on the transfer/posting criteria against the field postings.

Another interesting aspect of this development is that Ashfaq Ahmad Khan has been prematurely transferred from Lahore for the third time as DIG Operations. The IGP had recommended the transfer and new posting of Ashfaq Ahmad Khan in a summary moved to Chief Minister Usman Buzdar for final consideration. Mr Ashfaq was posted DIG Operations second time on June 4 while replacing Rai Babar Saeed.

Earlier, he was given the same assignment in May 2019 when he was serving as city police officer of Faisalabad. However, the government had prematurely transferred him within some months of his posting as DIG Operations Lahore.

The government has also transferred Multan RPO Waseem Sial and posted him as DIG Counter Terrorism Department Punjab against the post that had fallen vacant after the transfer of Mr Tahir Rai who was made IGP Balochistan.According to the notification, Mr Sial was also assigned additional charge of additional IG CTD Punjab.

Similarly, Punjab police DIG Headquarters Syed Khurram Ali has been transferred and posted new RPO Multan. Mr Khurram served as DIG headquarters for one and-a-half years and it was his second posting as head of a region. Earlier, he had served as RPO Sargodha.

He has been replaced by BS-20 police officer Shahzada Sultan, commandant police training college, Lahore.

Awaiting posting Ahmed Jamalur Rehman has been posted as new commandant of the college.

Punjab DIG Telecommunication Ahmad Arsalan Malik has been transferred and posted RPO Sahiwal vice Tariq Abbas Qureshi who has been transferred and posted DIG Technical Procurement against an existing vacancy.

Published in Dawn, January 30th, 2021