Punjab govt shakes up Rawalpindi police hierarchy

DIG Capt (retd) Ehsan Tufail appointed new RPO, Faisal Rana made CPO

RAWALPINDI: Following a number of high profile incidents, the Rawalpindi police bureaucracy was reshuffled on Wednesday with new regional and city police officers being appointed.

According to a notification issued by the Punjab Chief Secretary Yousaf Naseem Khokar, Rawalpindi Regional Police Officer (RPO) Ahmed Ishaque Jehangir was transferred to serve as the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of the Punjab Elite Police Force.

In his stead, Sihala Police Training College Commandant DIG Captain (retired) Ehsan Tufail was appointed as Rawalpindi RPO.

Similarly, Rawalpindi City Police Officer (CPO) Abbas Ahsan was transferred to the Sihala training college as its new commandant.

Muhammad Faisal Rana, who was serving as the Punjab Research and Development DIG at the Central Police Office in Lahore was appointed as the new Rawalpindi CPO. Rana has previously served in the Punjab Special Police Unit (SPU).

Sheikhpura RPO Abdul Qadir Qayyum replaced Rana as the Research and Development DIG.

Punjab Police Special Branch VVIP Security Wing DIG Sohail Habib Tajik has been posted as the Sheikhupura RPO.

Ahsan had been appointed as the Rawalpindi CPO during the July 2018 general elections but was kept on by the incoming Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

Former Rawalpindi RPO Jehangir was appointed after the general elections, replacing DIG Faiz Diyo.

Police misconduct

Police misconduct with the public is not a new story and it even was a focus point for Prime Minister Imran Khan’s much-touted police reforms. But it has now emerged that senior officials have also started to mistreat their juniors even if they put forth a legitimate demand.

Sources have disclosed that a sub-inspector (SI) in the Rawalpindi police armoury had called on CPO Ahsan to complain over the lack of staff and the problems arising as a result of recent transfers of some technical staff by the operations SSP.

At this, the CPO directed him to meet with the related SSP and to raise the issue before him. However, when the complainant called on to the SSP, he first turned a deaf ear to the issue and then allegedly started scolding and abusing the junior officer for raising the matter before the CPO.

Distressed by the treatment meted out to him by the SSP, the SI returned to the CPO but complained about the alleged misconduct of his senior and suggested that he could quit his job.  He requested the CPO to forward the case to the related authorities himself

Police sources disclosed that the CPO ironed out the situation and assured him that the issue will be addressed.

When the CPO was asked about the matter, he confirmed the incident to The Express Tribune that there had been a minor quarrel owing to which an SI had demanded a transfer from his current post however the issue was cleared.

When The Express Tribune contacted the relevant SI, he said that he had only highlighted difficulties before the CPO which arose due to the transfers. However, he refused to comment on the exchange he had with the SSP.

Repeated attempts were made to contact the SSP but he could not be reached.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 16^th, 2019.