Ghulam Mahmood Dogar, a Lahore Capital City Police Officer (CCPO), was immediately suspended by the federal government on Saturday.
The action was taken a day after an enraged mob of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters protested the attempted murder of the party’s chairman Imran Khan outside the Governor House in Lahore.
The statement from the Establishment Division stated, “Ghulam Mahmood Dogar, a BS-21 officer of the Police Service of Pakistan, currently serving under the Government of Punjab, is placed under suspension with immediate effect and until further orders.”
According to sources with direct knowledge of the situation, Dogar was fired for allegedly politicising the police force and failing to provide the Governor House with impenetrable security during the PTI rallies.
In a letter sent to the Punjab Chief Secretary and Inspector General of Police on Friday, the administration of the Punjab Governor House asked for the deployment of additional police officers to ensure the safety of the governor of Punjab, his family, and the Governor House personnel.
The Punjab administration was asked by the Governor House to take all necessary precautions to prevent the mob from entering the building. Additionally, the government asked that lawsuits be filed against the demonstrators for violating the law.
On Friday night, irrational PTI rioters gathered outside the Punjab Governor House and attempted to break through the mall’s front gate, burned tyres, tried to climb the fence, and vandalised the CCTV cameras. The Punjab administration had refused to give the federal government the services of the CCPO Lahore Ghulam Mehmood Dogar, which is crucial to highlight at this point.
The Establishment Division was notified of the province government’s choice by letter on October 29 from Punjab’s secretary of services.
According to the letter, CCPO Lahore Dogar was a priority for Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi. The services of the CCPO will be needed, according to Punjab, in its letter to the Establishment Division, to guarantee security arrangements during the PTI’s ongoing long march.
