Despite being eligible under the promotion criterion, around 423 Assistant Superintendents of Jails (ASJs) of the Punjab Prisons Department are awaiting for their promotions even after 20 years of service which not only negates the claims of bringing reforms in the prisons department but also raises serious questions over the transparency of promotions being made by the top brass.
According to a letter (No SO (Prs) 18-8/2017) dated November 20, 2017, a copy of which is available with Business Recorder, around 423 ASJs of the Punjab Prisons had requested the Inspector General of Prisons Punjab and the Additional Chief Secretary to take up this long-standing issue which is demoralizing integrity of the ASJs and other officials.
The letter stated that the mode of recruitment in the Punjab Prisons Department has been variable and inconstant over the years. "Often it has been done through direct recruitment at the Superintendent and Deputy Superintendent levels. The fixed quota for direct recruitment at the Assistant Superintendent, Deputy Superintendent and Superintendent level also has been variable over the years to cater vested interests only while merit and talent being flouted," the letter states.
In June 2010, the Services and General Administration Department (S&GAD) of the Punjab government issued a notification vide SOR-III-(S&GAD) 1-20/2004 and clarified that direct recruited assistant superintendents, deputy superintendents and superintendent will be promoted with a ratio of 30 percent while the rankers will be promoted with a ration of 70 percent.
Presently, 423 ASJs are working in the Punjab Prisons service selected through Punjab Public Service Commission (PPSC) after competitive examination in BSP-16, the letter said, asserting that more than 80 percent directly selected ASJs are post-graduates having all capability and talent to serve the public and executive affairs of the management.
"Unfortunately, they do not get promotion even after 20 years of service which is great discrimination and law of equal chance of promotion, making the ASJs static and disgruntle and pushing them to become dishonest and uninterested in their jobs. So far, 188 talented ASJs have left their jobs since 2005 while many are waiting to leave if this discrimination continues," the letter warned.
It emphasized that the Punjab Prisons Service Rules 2010 were based on supposition and do not cover ground realities and career progression. The letter also said that the higher authorities of Punjab Prisons never paid any heed to training courses which were made mandatory for the officials in the service rules for getting timely promotions. In this context, out of 196 executive officers from BSP-17 to BSP-21, only 44 officers got mandatory promotion courses from different training institutes. Consequently, 18 seats of deputy superintendents of BSP-17 (excluding direct quota), 16 seats of superintendents, 12 seats of BSP-19, and five seats of BSP-20 and one seat of BSP-21 are lying vacant since last seven years.
Due to this chocking situation, the letter stated that the ASJs are the main suffers of this situation because they serving on these posts for 20 years and get their retirement at the same post. However, the letter mentioned that some officials had received promotion few days before of their retirement.
The letter also asserted that the direct recruitment method has put the entire Prisons Department on ad-hoc footings as 51 out of 73 seats in BSP-18 and above are lying vacant, waiting for their incumbents which are unfortunately not available because of the rules and regulations - length of service applicable to directly recruited officers who have already got more than accelerated promotion and the ranks which have been barred from promotions because of the rules which negate their total length of service.
"There is prejudice and biased opinion in some minds of prisons high-ups (due to their higher academic background) about ASJs, resulting in mismanagement and bad repute of prisons department," the letter regrets. At the conclusion, the letter requested the authorities concerned to separate promotion criterion of both cadres ie, ASJs and DSJs to Senior Superintendents of Jails.
However, Inspector General of Prisons Punjab Mirza Shahid Saleem Baig while talking to this reporter over a telephonic call defended his department, saying timely promotions are being given to the officials having "neat and clean" service record. He claimed that there is not a single case of a person who had applied for his promotion and was not entertained. Responding to a query, he said promotion of ASJs generally takes 13 to 14 years.
The IG further claimed that they have promoted even those officials who have not completed their due training course but have clean record and presently they are serving as PSPs. He, however, asserted that officials having tainted service record would not be promoted.
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