Awaiting promotions: For some officers, education doesn’t pay off in Sindh police

Around 16 officials approach the court against promotions based on date of appointments.

KARACHI:

The charm of becoming a police officer for Amin Khan, an MBA graduate, was to head a police station, lead investigations and solve murder cases. Eleven years on, however, he has given up hopes of a promotion and is still serving as an Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI).

For officers with extensive educational credentials, promotion has become a nonexistent word. Amin was one of the 400 men who were directly appointed as ASI in the police force in 2002-2003.



These men belonged to the first batch of officers who had cleared the prestigious examination of the Sindh Public Service Commission (SPSC) held under the Sindh government. For the examination, a bachelor’s degree was a basic requirement.

“We thought that men like us, who have educational qualifications under our belt, could lead, become sub-inspectors and control crime in the city. But we were wrong,” lamented the man at the Sindh High Court. These days, he spends his time taking note of the police cases which are presented at the court.

Over the years, Amin has served in the Darakshan, Frere and Boat Basin police stations as ASI where high-ups would ask him to translate English applications into Urdu. “It is also frustrating to see that some investigation officers, who are at a higher level than us, don’t even know what to do with the cell phone data they obtain.”

One of the reasons for delay in such promotions is the rule of the police department that senior officials will be promoted first. On paper, that is a just reasoning but in theory, these officers are disheartened that their potential is not being fully utilised on the basis of a technicality.

The unfulfilled promise of promotion has left many disheartened, including one young man who has a postgraduate degree in commerce and recently left the police force to join a bank. Another one who had given the SPSC examination and had left medicine to become an officer is without a profession again. Engineers and criminologists who were also recruited as ASIs are also said to have left the profession.

Amin is also demoralised but for the time being is concentrating on his studies and other opportunities. He passed a test to serve in the United Nations peacekeeping in Sudan for one-and-a-half year, and is currently undergoing the final year of LLB.

Another university graduate, Nadeem Khan, complained that it was unfair to treat head constables and constables equal to them as the latter only required a matriculate degree to join the force.  According to him, there should be different tracks for promotion for them as there is currently no benefit of direct appointment.

An officer, who did not want to be named, said that they were embarrassed to face their families. “We are not paid much. How will we progress in this profession if we don’t get the positions and salaries we deserve,” said the BCom graduate.

This year, 16 officers, including Nadeem Khan, have filed a petition in the Sindh High Court against the Sindh police IG, ADIG and DIG. They have asked the court to direct the police department to follow the Police Act, according to which, separate quota systems should be developed for the promotion of those directly recruited and those being promoted from constables.

They have also alleged that there is discrimination in seniority of some officers, in particular of the Sindh Reserve Police, who have been promoted and posted by adopting unlawful means.

According to senior police officer SSP Amir Farooqi, the rules have been changed and now seniority is being given to officers according to their date of appointment. “This procedure is unjust and the court should provide relief to the officers who were recruited directly.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 9^th, 2013.