Bid adieu: Maj Gen Bilal Akbar to be Rangers Sindh DG from August

His replacement is currently posted in Lahore as GOC.


Our Correspondent July 13, 2014

KARACHI: By August, Sindh will have a new Rangers DG. While the process has already started and will go on till October, Major General Bilal Akbar will take over from Maj Gen Rizwan Akhtar next month.

Maj Gen Akbar is currently posted as the General Officer Commanding (GOC) in Lahore. "Maj Gen Akbar will join the Sindh Rangers in August and will have an overlap of one month before taking over charge as DG Rangers," the Inter-Services Public Relations spokesperson told The Express Tribune. "Maj Gen Akhtar has successfully completed his tenure and will continue to perform his duties as Rangers DG till Maj Gen Akbar takes over."

A military official explained the entire process will take time as the Rangers DG-designate Maj Gen Akbar will take over his new post in the next couple of months.

Around two years ago, Maj Gen Akhtar was appointed as Rangers Sindh DG. Before this he was GOC Wana.

The decision to change DGs has been taken by the military at a time when the Rangers are working in collaboration with the police in the Karachi operation against militants and criminals. Rangers, under the leadership of Maj Gen Akhtar, have been accused of extrajudicial killings. Political parties, including the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), have voiced their reservations over the operation several times. A few days ago MQM chief Altaf Hussain called the Karachi Corps Commander Lt-General Sajjad Ghani assured Hussain about forming a committee to address the complaints against the operation. Traders have also frequently complained that the police and Rangers have failed to restore peace.

However, military and paramilitary officials have denied this and said that the transfer of the current DG Rangers is a routine matter and had no link with any other issue. "Akhtar's replacement is not a conspiracy theory but a routine matter," said a Rangers official. "He will most likely be promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general."

Published in The Express Tribune, July 14th, 2014.

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