Chief Minister (CM) of Punjab Maryam Nawaz has ordered the immediate transfer of Jhang Deputy Commissioner (DC) Babar Sahib Din after a Punjab Enforcement and Regulatory Authority (PERA) vehicle appeared in a jeep rally, calling its deployment a breach of administrative discipline.
A video of the rally was originally posted on the official account of Member of the Provincial Assembly (MPA) Saqib Chadhar around a week ago. Another user shared the footage on X on October 24 with the caption, “Talk aside, Saqib Chadhar’s protocol is squad-level.”
Maryam later reshared the video and announced that the DC was being removed from his post with immediate effect.
“The video depicts a car rally in which a PERA vehicle is seen accompanying other participating vehicles. The deployment of a regulatory authority’s resources for non-serious purposes, beyond its officially prescribed mandate, constitutes a serious breach of administrative discipline and a violation of established policy,” Maryam wrote.
“In view of this matter, the Deputy Commissioner is being removed from the post with immediate effect,” she added.
The Punjab government’s Services and General Administration Department issued a notification on October 25, stating that Babar Sahib Din, a Pakistan Administrative Service officer of grade 18, had been transferred with immediate effect and directed to report to the department for further orders.
The notification was issued on the governor’s orders and signed by Chief Secretary Zahid Akhtar Zaman.
The chief minister also responded to an X user who requested a fair inquiry before further action against the deputy commissioner. The user claimed that the PERA vehicle had been deployed for security and rescue duties during the rally rather than for a private recreational activity.
Maryam rejected that explanation, saying security fell within the police’s responsibilities, while Rescue 1122 handled rescue operations and emergency response.
“Neither function falls within PERA’s statutory mandate. The activity in question, therefore, has no apparent connection with PERA’s prescribed duties and raises serious concerns about the rationale for deploying its vehicle in the rally,” she replied.
The chief minister also shared a letter issued by PERA Director General (DG) Farrukh Atiq Khan on October 21, 2025, warning deputy commissioners against the unauthorised use of the authority’s double-cabin vehicles.
The letter stated that the vehicles had been allocated exclusively for PERA field operations but were being used for unauthorised activities. It also noted that some deputy commissioners had handed over the vehicles to assistant deputy commissioners, in violation of the authority’s policy.
The director general directed officials to retrieve vehicles from unauthorised allocations and keep them parked at their camp offices until regular Sub-Divisional Enforcement Officers were posted at tehsil-level enforcement stations, which the letter expected by December 2026.
