Tarbela Ghazi: Chairman of VC Ghara Hamlet, Mr. Riasat-ur-Rehman, has expressed grave concern over the unauthorized and extraordinary increase in verification fees at the Police Assistance Line (PAL) office in Ghazi. He urged the Inspector General of Police Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Deputy Commissioner Haripur to conduct a transparent investigation into the matter and take prompt action to abolish this unjustified hike.
Speaking to the media yesterday, Mr. Riasat-ur-Rehman stated that since November 1, 2024, the fee for obtaining a police verification certificate has been significantly increased from Rs. 50 to Rs. 1000, Rs. 2000, and Rs. 3000, respectively. He further revealed that no official receipts are provided for the collected fees, raising concerns over transparency.
He said that when questioned, officials claimed the increase was implemented based on instructions from the Inspector General of Police Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. According to their explanation, 50% of the collected fees are allocated to the District Police Officer’s office, 25% to the Regional Police Officer’s office, and the remaining 25% is deposited into the national treasury. However, Mr. Riasat-ur-Rehman highlighted that no similar fee increase has been implemented in any of the 38 districts across the province.
He specifically pointed out that in the neighboring district of Swabi, police verification certificates are issued free of charge, while in districts such as Mardan, Peshawar, and Kohat, fees do not exceed Rs. 50-100.