Islamabad: Shahbanu Ghaznavi, a high-ranking member of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), has petitioned Islamabad courts to review widespread corruption in Pakistan’s civil bureaucracy. She thinks such corrupt practices are being swept under the carpet through the discretionary powers of the Prime Minister.
The case will be presented on April 15, 2025, in a lower court and once again on April 16, 2025, in the Islamabad High Court, in front of Justice Naeem Inam Minhas.
In her appeal, Shahbanu Ghaznavi raises the point that civil service, whose duty it is to work on behalf of people, has also turned into a political leader- and group-interest-serving mechanism. Rather than providing an apolitical organization, bureaucracy is now being used as a mechanism serving the powerful groups’ interest and resulting in practices akin to favoritism such as under colonial rule by the East India Company.
Chief Matters Raised by Shahbanu Ghaznavi:
Bribery: Bribery is stated by Shahbanu Ghaznavi as being paid on the occasion of promotions, transfer, and posting in the FBR.
Bureaucratic Corruption:
The petition opines that corruption is undermining the integrity of public service and thwarting it in playing its role as an impartial institution.
Shahbanu Ghaznavi has asked the Chief Justice of the Islamabad High Court to intervene immediately to address these problems and bring to justice those responsible for their abuse of power.
This petition is a vital milestone in the ongoing struggle for transparency and accountability in Pakistan’s public sector. Shahbanu Ghaznavi is urging real reform to make the civil service work for the public, not the political elite.
