PTI members say that the choice of Kamyana as the new city police commander was aimed to stifle party activity.
LAHORE: Bilal Siddique Kamyana, a senior police officer praised by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) but feared by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for crushing its long march last year, was appointed as Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Lahore in the first significant appointment by the new Caretaker Chief Minister Punjab.
Ghulam Mehmood Dogar, the departing CCPO, was given the assignment to report to the Services and General Administration Department after his departure. Kamyana has now held the position for two appointments. Due to his tight ties to the PML-N and the long history of contacts the party has had with one of his family, a well-known lawyer, the PTI is upset with Kamyana’s nomination.
Fawad Ahmad Chaudhry, the leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PT), declared during a press conference on Tuesday in Lahore that “those involved in the police crackdown on May 25 to block the PTI march to Islamabad have been appointed.”
According to Chaudhry, “We have formally complained to the Election Commission that those who were actively involved in the May 25 crackdown against PTI incidents should not be appointed in Punjab.” Due to his involvement in the crackdown on PTI activists during its lengthy march to Islamabad in May, he came under increasing attack from inside the PTI.
Kamyana was Hamza Shahbaz’s first significant appointment after becoming chief minister. Mohsin Naqvi, the interim chief minister of Punjab, followed suit by designating Kamyana as CCPO on his first day in office.
