Lahore High Court has ordered the inspector general of police to investigate reports that the capital city police officer and the deputy inspector general operations had dismissed an official over baseless allegations.
Justice Muhammad Ameer Bhatti issued the order on a petition by Inspector Hassan Askari.
Askari said CCPO Chaudhry Shafiq had dismissed him from service over baseless allegations.
He said when he had appealed, the IG had restored him and ordered his posting in Sheikhupura.
He said the CCPO had used his connections to stop his joining in Sheikhupura.
He said he had written two applications in this regard but no decision had been made on these applications.
He said the CCPO, DIG Rana Abdul Jabbar, SP Umar Cheema and SP Maroof Wahla had developed a grudge against him for refusing to obey their “illegal” orders during his posting in Lahore.
Talking to newsmen, Askari said in 1997, when he was posted in Green Town, Chaudhry Shafiq, who was Township ASP at the time, had asked him to release proclaimed offender Amjad alias Aju.
He said when he refused, the Shafiq had developed grudge against him.
Court seeks reply from federal govt
Lahore High Court on Friday directed the federal government and the Ministry of Water and Power to explain reasons for unannounced load shedding across the country.
Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial was hearing the petition against load shedding.
Advocate Azhar Siddique said the ministry had told the court that unannounced load shedding had been ended.
He said the ministry had announced load shedding of six to eight hours but people were facing 16 to 18 hours unannounced power outages.
He said the installed capacity of electricity in the country was 22,000 MW and 17,000 MW could be easily produced.
He said presently only 9,000 to 11,000 MW was being produced due to non-payment of circular debt of about Rs200 billion to independent power producers.
The lawyer said if payments to IPPs were paid on time, there would be no load shedding.
He said the government should be ordered to end unannounced load shedding and to maintain load shedding to maximum eight hours in light of the court’s previous order.
Justice Bandial adjourned further hearing till May 8.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 3rd, 2014.