Staff Reporter
Sindh Information Minister Murtaza Wahab has called on PTI leaders in the province to
check with their leadership before making “ignorant” statements.He said this to the media on Thursday
while justifying the Sindh government’s decision to remove Sindh IG Kaleem Imam. He said legal
procedure was followed in the entire case.PTI leaders accused the government of making a unilateral
decision to remove the police chief. But Wahab said Prime Minister Imran Khan knew about the decision
beforehand.In November, Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah met PM Khan and informed him about the
government’s reservations against IG Imam. He told him that the government doesn’t have confidence
in him and has compelling reasons to do so, said Wahab. The police are supposed to work properly and
independently, said CM Shah, but they must be accountable as well. Wahab said PM Khan agreed with
the CM that if there is a law and order situation in the province, the chief executive is held accountable,
not the police. The PM said it was the same for him.They agreed that under the Police Act, the process
to remove the IG would be started, said the minister. That was on December 23, he said. Despite this,
the chief minister waited till January 16 to remove him, he said. PM House was also intimated by the CM
that the cabinet meeting would be held on the issue, said Wahab. My PTI friends have made statements
based on ignorance, he said, urging them to consult with the federal government and PM first and then
make statements. In Punjab, five IGs have been changed recently and in KP four have been changed, but
no one says anything about that, he said.Wahab also discussed the “compelling reasons” to remove the
IG, including the crime index going up in 2019. He said four-wheel snatchings, murder, attempted
murder, burglaries and highway robberies all increased during the year but the IG would not accept that
crime was going up.The police’s main job is policing, he said. But when asked, the IG kept saying it is an
“ideal” situation, said Wahab.He also counted between 10 and 11 incidents of the police killing people
by straight firing or in the crossfire during an encounter. When we ask about the Bisma case, or the
Nabeel Hoodbhoy case, we get no response, said Wahab.Regarding the Hoodbhoy case, he said an
independent member of the Public Safety Commission, Nazim Haji, asked the CM to call an emergency
meeting on it. The police keep saying they’ll do something, but there is no change, said Wahab. He said
if it was a performance issue, then their target is to improve performance. Wahab said under the Police
Act, the police was independent but it was answerable to the government and Public Safety
Commission. This is also the only province in which the IG is in direct contact with foreign missions, said
the minister. He said this isn’t allowed under the federal or Sindh government’s Rules of Business.
