In Faisalabad, an Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) employee serving in the capacity of district election commissioner has made the decision to request the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) to remove Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan from his post over "abuse of administrative authority," reported Dawn on Monday.
In addition to challenging the selections of important ECP officers, including its secretary, Omar Hamid Khan, DEC Irfan Kausar decided to do so because he was outraged by the Election Commission's rule by "outsiders" and dubious promotions. The official stated his desire to follow in the footsteps of another ECP officer, Adnan Bashir, and submit a reference against the ECP chief to the SJC. A few months ago, Bashir requested that the judicial council take action against his boss.
The reference against the CEC will allegedly involve the use of undue influence to further financial interests in real estate and private businesses, as well as obtaining lucrative postings for the extended family of bureaucrats, according to the letter sent to the secretary through the provincial election commissioner. Other charges include using taxpayer money during a time of financial hardship, disobeying constitutional directives, abusing administrative power, and undermining the ECP's administrative structure in order to sway general elections.
A declaration of CEC Raja's assets and those of his dependents, the minutes of Departmental Development Working Party (DDWP) meetings, and allocations to the Public Works Department for the fiscal year 2022-2023 were also requested by the official. The seniority list of the ECP officers, as well as a copy of the service rules and any revisions, were also requested.
He announced his intention to contest the appointments of Secretary Omar Hamid Khan (a retired federal secretary), Special Secretary Zafar Iqbal Hussain (a retired ECP officer), and Additional Secretary (HR) Khalid Siddique (a retired civil servant), claiming that these appointments had been made illegally. He made these declarations in separate letters to the ECP secretary.
Additionally, the ECP official sent a letter to President Arif Alvi, the speaker of the National Assembly, the chairman of the Senate, and members of parliament to draw their attention to alleged illegal appointments in the ECP that were made in violation of service regulations.
The letter further stated that, due to the lack of service regulations, the ECP chief has "sole administrative authority without the oversight of the commission."
"Now that the commissioner has appointed his retired colleagues and classmates to high administrative jobs, the ECP's organizational structure is at his will. Mid-career ECP cadre officers are arbitrarily being promoted, according to the letter, which appealed to the president and parliament for help.
In addition to challenging the selections of important ECP officers, including its secretary, Omar Hamid Khan, DEC Irfan Kausar decided to do so because he was outraged by the Election Commission's rule by "outsiders" and dubious promotions. The official stated his desire to follow in the footsteps of another ECP officer, Adnan Bashir, and submit a reference against the ECP chief to the SJC. A few months ago, Bashir requested that the judicial council take action against his boss.
The reference against the CEC will allegedly involve the use of undue influence to further financial interests in real estate and private businesses, as well as obtaining lucrative postings for the extended family of bureaucrats, according to the letter sent to the secretary through the provincial election commissioner. Other charges include using taxpayer money during a time of financial hardship, disobeying constitutional directives, abusing administrative power, and undermining the ECP's administrative structure in order to sway general elections.
A declaration of CEC Raja's assets and those of his dependents, the minutes of Departmental Development Working Party (DDWP) meetings, and allocations to the Public Works Department for the fiscal year 2022-2023 were also requested by the official. The seniority list of the ECP officers, as well as a copy of the service rules and any revisions, were also requested.
He announced his intention to contest the appointments of Secretary Omar Hamid Khan (a retired federal secretary), Special Secretary Zafar Iqbal Hussain (a retired ECP officer), and Additional Secretary (HR) Khalid Siddique (a retired civil servant), claiming that these appointments had been made illegally. He made these declarations in separate letters to the ECP secretary.
Additionally, the ECP official sent a letter to President Arif Alvi, the speaker of the National Assembly, the chairman of the Senate, and members of parliament to draw their attention to alleged illegal appointments in the ECP that were made in violation of service regulations.
The letter further stated that, due to the lack of service regulations, the ECP chief has "sole administrative authority without the oversight of the commission."
"Now that the commissioner has appointed his retired colleagues and classmates to high administrative jobs, the ECP's organizational structure is at his will. Mid-career ECP cadre officers are arbitrarily being promoted, according to the letter, which appealed to the president and parliament for help.