Imran Khan orders inquiry against senior bureaucrat for mocking his govt on social media

Hammad Shamimi, a senior joint secretary of the Cabinet Division, had posted a comment on a social media platform that was tantamount to misconduct under the Civil Servants (Efficiency and Discipline) Rules, 2020

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has ordered an inquiry against a senior civil servant who drew a similarity between his government and that of the Afghan Taliban’s interim regime on a social media platform, a media report said on November 23.

According to a statement of allegations issued by the Establishment Division on November 22, Hammad Shamimi, a senior joint secretary of the Cabinet Division, had posted a comment on a social media page/platform that was tantamount to misconduct under the Civil Servants (Efficiency and Discipline) Rules, 2020, Dawn newspaper reported.

The Establishment Division's notification then goes on to reproduce Mr. Shamimi's alleged post in Urdu, in which he had written — “A similarity between the PTI and the Taliban is that both are figuring out how to run the government only after assuming power. And the centre of hope for both of them is Aabpara." Aabpara, a place in Islamabad, is often considered in the media as synonymous with the Inter-Services Intelligence or ISI due to the spy agency’s offices located at the place.