LAHORE: The Punjab government has suspended or dismissed 54 officers and officials in what it describes as a decisive phase of its campaign against corruption, with several others arrested and criminal cases registered against them.
According to an official statement, the action was initiated on the directions of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif, with departments instructed to move against officials allegedly involved in corrupt practices.
The Food Department has emerged as the main focus of the drive, accounting for 48 of the officers and officials facing action — a concentration that reflects the department’s direct control over wheat procurement, storage and release, long identified as a pressure point for rent-seeking in Punjab.
In Bahawalpur, six food grain inspectors — Sajid Mahmood Khan, Mohammad Saleem, Asim Ali, Abdul Rashid, Mohammad Ishaq and Tariq Rashid — were dismissed from service. Also dismissed in the district were Wasim Talha, Haroon Abdullah and chowkidar Umar Hayat.
Several officials in Gujranwala were removed as well, including Assistant Food Controller Abu Bakr Raza, Babar Javed, Shafiq, Ansar Butt, Mohammad Nisar, senior clerk Waqar Ahmed, Zulfiqar Ali, Mohammad Ali Shaheen and Atif Hussain.
Food Grain Inspector Nadeem Shahzad of Sargodha, Assistant Food Controller Humayun Shaukat Bhatti of Multan and chowkidar Riffaqat Ali were also removed from service.
The department has initiated disciplinary proceedings against 14 food controllers over corruption allegations, extending the drive from field staff to district-level supervisory officers.
Those facing proceedings include Mohammad Faisal of Bahawalnagar, Mohammad Muslim of Okara, Abdul Majeed Khan of Narowal, Mohammad Ali of Rahim Yar Khan, Khadim Hussain of Dera Ghazi Khan and Abdul Rehman of Mianwali.
Proceedings have also been initiated against Imran Baloch in Sahiwal, Rana Bin Yamin in Dera Ghazi Khan, Mohammad Khalid in Gujrat, Ramzan Sial in Attock and Sidra Miraj in Chakwal. Rana Riaz of Layyah, Ali Imran of Gujranwala, Adeel Ahmed of Bahawalnagar and Khadim Faraz of Mianwali complete the list.
Running parallel to the departmental action, the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) has increased arrests and the registration of cases against officials allegedly involved in bribery and other corrupt practices.
In Vehari, Union Council Secretary Riaz Ahmed was arrested in a raid and a case registered against him. A senior clerk of Sheikhupura Municipal Corporation, Mohammad Ashraf, was allegedly caught red-handed and arrested, with a case registered subsequently.
In Faisalabad, a trap raid led to the arrest of computer operator Zain-ul-Islam and Union Council Secretary Mohammad Aslam. Ghulam Murtaza was arrested in Bahawalnagar, while in Mandi Bahauddin, ACE officials arrested Local Government junior clerk Mudassar Iqbal while he was allegedly accepting a bribe.
In Gujranwala, a case was registered against Parks and Horticulture Authority field officer Qamar Zaman, who was also arrested.
Speaking separately at the launch of the province’s AI Intelligence Hub, the chief minister said the campaign would be pursued without exception. “Wherever there is corruption, it will not be forgiven,” she said, adding that corruption had been detected in the Suthra Punjab sanitation programme and those involved had been suspended.
She said Punjab had comparatively low levels of corruption but that the government was moving harder against it. “Even if corruption involves Rs100, we will pursue it,” she said.
A helpline has been established for citizens to report corruption, while written instructions have been issued to inspectors general, regional police officers and other senior officials to identify and remove corrupt elements from the system. Body cameras have been provided to police personnel to monitor conduct during duty hours.
The chief minister said the campaign would be taken to its logical conclusion, framing public trust as the test of the exercise: “If the people do not trust the government, we will fall behind.”
The distinction between the categories of action matters for what follows. Dismissals are departmental penalties that can be contested through service appeals and the Punjab Service Tribunal, while the ACE cases will move through anti-corruption courts, where conviction depends on evidence gathered during the trap raids.
The Lahore Times has sought comment from the Punjab Food Department and the Anti-Corruption Establishment. Officials named in this report have not been convicted; all allegations remain to be tested in departmental proceedings or before the courts, and the newspaper will carry their response if provided.
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