Conflict of interest, opinion mars investigation

Introduction of accused’s witness as member of the inquiry panel in government probe suspected to have swayed judgment

KARACHI:

A committee, established to investigate the dismissal of a senior employee of the Institute of Business Administration (IBA), appears to be marred by conflict of interest.

The involvement of IBA’s former associate dean, Dr Huma Baqai in a government panel reviewing the dismissal of university’s Human Resource Director, Mashooq Bhatti, has stirred up a hornet’s nest, leading many to believe that the decision to reinstate the ousted official may have been a product of nobbling.

Bhatti, who had been allegedly involved in a slew of harassment and certain misconduct cases, was axed last September at the behest of a decree passed by the university’s board of governors (BOGs).

The human resource director’s hasty termination had led to the formation of an inquiry committee ordered by the Sindh Chief Minister, for which Dr Huma Baqai was chosen as a representing member from the IBA. However, Dr Huma, had in her time as IBA’s associate dean and chair of university’s anti-harassment committee had dismissed investigations into allegations against Bhatti.

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According to documents available with the Express Tribune, she also acted as Bhatti’s character witness before committees formed to probe several separate allegations of harassment levelled against the former HR director.

It is worth noting that despite being reported for both harassment and misconduct, the former HR director was only scrutinised and eventually dismissed for the latter. As for the cases of harassment, he was able to secure a restraining order from the court, which has shielded him against a separate inquiry.

However, Dr Samreen Hussain, who is part of the IBA’s BOG and convener of the committee that probed Bhatti’s dismissal, stated that the verdict to remove the HR director was never unanimously agreed upon, as advertised by the university.

“I and other members of the BOG including Amjad Rafi and Sindh University VC Dr Siddique Kalhoro had very clearly opposed the decision of Bhatti’s dismissal and believed that the accused should get a chance to have a personal hearing, but our opinions weren’t entertained,” she commented.

When asked about her stance on Dr Huma’s presence in the government panel that ordered Bhatti’s immediate reinstatement, she said that they needed to have someone from IBA on the team, regardless of who they were. “It happened to be Baqai who facilitated us,” the BOG member and convener of the committee opined. Yet however, a report of the university’s harassment committee obtained by The Express Tribune suggests that Dr Huma to be responsible for stalling investigations into complaints against Bhatti by at least two female students.

As per the report, Dr Huma had admitted before the committee that she’d seen the CCTV footage and deemed actions of the accused - IBA Registrar Asad Ilyas and Mashooq Bhatti - to be inappropriate, but did not consider further investigations into the matter.

On the other hand, when questioned regarding her involvement in the government panel investigating Bhatti’s dismissal despite being a former witness of his, the erstwhile associate dean of IBA maintained that it was her duty as both, the associate dean and chairperson of the university’s anti-harassment committee. It is however revealed that the case was never with her, as the committee’s report highlights that the alleged victim never offered her anything in writing.

“I was the anti-harassment chair and addressed the situation as I deemed fit. As for stalling investigations, no formal complaints were lodged by the complainants and both parties eventually backed off. If you need further explanations, go talk to IBA,” remarked Dr Huma, when cross-examined against her own committee’s report.

Whereas, when The Express Tribune contacted Mashooq Bhatti for his comments on affairs that led to his dismissal from the university, he claimed that it was all orchestrated at the behest of university’s administration, with Registrar Dr Asad Ilyas pulling the strings.

“These circumstances were created to force me to resign. Dr Ilyas had nepotistic plans that I did not stand by, so was eventually sacked,” Bhatti claimed. Despite Bhatti’s striking statements, IBA on the other hand has remained rather mum about the whole situation; continuing to avoid all public disclosure regarding the university’s administrative position on the case and the allegations levelled by the accused.

“IBA hasn’t received any official statement on the situation and therefore we are not in the position to offer any comments and neither can we share minutes of the BOG meeting that terminated Bhatti, on grounds that those documents are confidential,” a spokesperson of the university told The Express Tribune, when approached for an official statement.