Dark horse run favourite for Director General IB vacant slot

*ISLAMABAD: *Two senior officers of Police Service of Pakistan (PSP) haveemerged as the hot favourites for the top slot of Intelligence Bureau (IB).

Sources told that the names of Fawad Asad Ullah Khan, Dr Suleman Khan, MehrKhaliq Dad Lak, Rao Sardar Ali Khan and Arif Nawaz Khan have been discussedin a number of meetings, but no name has yet been finalised for theposition of Director General (DG).

However, inside sources claimed that Rao Sardar Ali Khan and Arif NawazKhan were the two top contenders for the post because of their proximity toPunjab CM Shehbaz Sharif.

While Fawad Asad Ullah Khan currently heads the federal region and ispositioned as IB Joint Director, Dr Suleman Khan also serves as IB JointDirector in KP, Rao Sardar Ali Khan in Punjab, and Mehr Khaliq Dad Laklooks after the bureau’s academy as IB Commandant Academy. Arif Nawaz Khanis currently serving as Punjab Inspector General Police (IGP).

Sources privy to the developments informed that the Punjab CM and former-PMNawaz Sharif had also discussed the matter in detail but had not disclosedany name. The ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government willfinalise the name with the approval of Shehbaz Sharif, the sources added.

The government had appointed Aftab Sultan as IB DG in June 2013. He retiredfrom service in BPS 22 in 2014 and was given annual extensions in servicetwice before being given a two-year extension by Sharif in February 2016.

A media report said Sultan had become one of the trusted confidantes ofSharif and played an active role in ‘managing the situation’ during over126-day-long sit-in of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and Pakistan Awami Tehreekin 2014.

It is pertinent to mention here that the Aftab Sultan has equipped the IBwith modernised techniques of espionage and surveillance that improved thecapabilities of the department. In addition, the bureau has done extensivework on counter-terrorism during the tenure of Sultan.

According to a earlier reportlink>,Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has not been able to appoint IB DG inplace of the recently retired DG Aftab Sultan.