Lahore bombing sparks bureaucratic reshuffle in Punjab

PM appoints Zahid Saeed as new Punjab chief secretary; more changes likely to follow

ISLAMABAD: The Lahore park bombing has apparently sparked a bureaucratic reshuffle with the prime minister removing the Punjab chief secretary (CS) as the first major change on Friday.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has given his approval to appoint Captain (retd) Zahid Saeed as the new provincial chief secretary in place of Khizer Hayat Gondal, according to the PM House.



Gondal was appointed as the Punjab CS in January last year after Babar Yaqoub refused to take the responsibility.

He formerly served as the Azad Kashmir chief secretary as well. Gondal has now been appointed as the federal industries secretary to replace Arif Azeem, who has been made an Officer on Special Duty.

Saeed has previously served as the Rawalpindi Division commissioner as well as the managing director of the Punjab Irrigation and Drainage Authority and Punjab’s irrigation secretary.

Sources told The Express Tribune the premier has started changing the current bureaucratic setup and removed the Punjab chief secretary as the first step in the wake of the Lahore blast and the ongoing operation in the province.



They said another major change in Punjab’s bureaucracy was on the cards and more changes would take place gradually.

A suicide bombing inside a park in Lahore had left 75 people dead and hundreds more injured on March 27. The terrorist attack has triggered widespread military-led operations in the province, long considered a breeding ground for extremists.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 2^nd, 2016.