The High-Powered Selection Board (HPSB) has approved the promotion of 36 officers from the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS), Police Service and Foreign Service to Grade 22.
However, the promotions of Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) officers have been deferred due to a stay order issued by the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
The board will reconvene on Monday to review promotions in other service groups.
The HPSB meeting, presided over by Deputy PM Ishaq Dar, was held at the Cabinet Division. PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari also attended the moot as a member of the board, along with federal minister Ahad Cheema, Establishment Division Secretary Inamullah Khan and Cabinet Secretary Kamran Ali Afzal.
During the meeting, the board reviewed over 150 officers for promotion to Grade 22. Later, it approved the elevation of 19 officers from the PAS, eight from the Police Service and nine from the Foreign Service.
The PAS officers, who are promoted to Grade 22, include Mohyuddin Ahmad Wani, Waseem Ajmal Chaudhry, Ambreen Raza, Ali Tahir, Usman Akhtar Bajwa, Muhammad Humair Karim, Syed Ataur Rehman, Musaddiq Ahmad Khan, Rashid Mahmood, Momin Agha, Nadeem Mahbub, Shakeel Ahmad Mangnejo, Dawood Muhammad Bareach, Saadia Sarwat Jawaid, Asad Rehman Gilani, Ali Sarfraz Hussain, Zahid Akhtar Zaman, Nabeel Ahmad Awan and Ahmad Raza Sarwar.
Those from the Police Service promoted to Grade 22 are BA Nasir, Ghulam Nabi Memon, Muhammad Farooq Mazhar, Imran Yaqoob Minhas, Abdul Khaliq Shaikh, Shahzad Sultan, Zubair Hashmi and Muhammad Tahir.
The Foreign Service officers promoted to Grade 22 include Ahmad Naseem Warraich, Pakistan's Ambassador to the EU Rahim Hayat Qureshi, Pakistan's Permanent Representative to the UN Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Pakistan's Ambassador to the US Rizwan Saeed Sheikh, Syed Ahsan Raza Shah, Pakistan's Ambassador to the UAE Faisal Niaz Tirmizi, Nabeel Munir, Pakistan's Ambassador to Germany Saqlain Sayedah and Foreign Office Spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan.
The official notification for the promoted officers are expected within a day or two. This meeting marked the first HPSB session in nearly one-and-a-half-year. However, due to the busy schedules of Dar and Bilawal, not all cases were reviewed.
The board will meet again on Monday to assess promotions for five positions in the Secretariat Group, five in the Inland Revenue Service, two in the Audit and Accounts Service, and one each in the Information Group and Postal Group.
Sources indicated that if the IHC lifts the stay order following the submission of an affidavit, the FBR officers' promotions will also be considered.
The IHC sought affidavits from the FBR chairman and the secretary to the prime minister. The FBR chairman must confirm that no summary regarding the petitioner's placement in the administrative pool has been forwarded, while the secretary to the premier must affirm that no such summary has been received from the FBR chairman.
Earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif amended the rules, allowing Dar to preside over the HPSB for the first time.
Meanwhile, Bilawal participated in the board meeting for the first time as a member.
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