—Saleemi previously served as National Police Academy’s Commandant
LAHORE: Amjad Javed Saleemi has officially taken charge as Punjab’s Inspector General of Police (IGP) after being appointed to the post last week.
Saleemi replaces Mohammad Tahir who was appointed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and served as the Punjab IGP for a period of one month and two days only.
He was presented with a guard of honour on his arrival at the IG office in Lahore.
Saleemi’s appointment was announced by the Establishment Division last week but he could not assume charge as the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) suspended the notification since it came days before Sunday’s by-polls. According to the ECP rules, the government is not allowed to make new appointments or transfer any government official before the elections.
Saleemi was previously serving as the commandant of the National Police Academy in Islamabad.
Talking to the media after assuming charge, Saleemi said that he meant to work with senior police officers, including Nasir Durrani, formerly head of police reforms commission to introduce reforms in Punjab police.
“He (Durrani) has resigned from the commission but he is still a senior police officer,” said the police chief. “We will ask him for advice whenever it is needed.”
The sudden appointment of Saleemi as Punjab’s police chief stirred controversy which was fueled by Durrani’s immediate resignation from his position. Police officers close to him had said that Durrani appeared upset in the wake of the news about Tahir’s departure from the IG’s office.
Tahir’s removal is said to have come about after a growing realisation in the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf circles that he was unable to carry out the task required of him by the rulers during the tone-setting period of the Imran government.
Saleemi, in his media talk vowed that he will work hard in order to improve the performance of the police. He admitted that there was corruption in the police department but promised to root it out by strengthening the internal accountability system.
The IGP observed that first information reports (FIR) of many reported crimes were not registered as the process was complicated.
“We have to improve the process of registering FIRs. I will ensure all FIRs are lodged even though it would seem like crime in the province has grown,” he said.
Saleemi further said that at least 10 per cent of his police force will be in training institutes so that they can perform better. He said leading a force of 190,000 was like leading the world’s biggest police force, but he was ready to face the challenge.
The new Punjab IG is reportedly a close relative of Punjab Governor Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar.
