Federal Health Secretary Tauqir Shah removed after PAT's protest: sources  

ISLAMABAD: The federal government, after protest of Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) on Wednesday removed federal health secretary Tauqir Shah from his post, ARY News reported, citing sources.

Dr Shah has been advised to report to the Establishment Division, sources said. Additional Secretary Health Dr Tanveer Ahmed has been promoted as health secretary.

Dr Tauqir Shah is said to be one of the main accused in the Model Town massacre. PAT Chief Dr Tahirul Qadri in his tweet had shown his displeasure and demanded his removal.

He has also remained as principal secretary to the then chief minister Punjab Shehbaz Sharif.

Model Town incident

The Punjab Police launched an anti-encroachment operation to remove barriers outside the offices of Minhaj-ul-Quran International and Qadri’s residence in the Model Town suburb in Lahore.

The police reached the PAT headquarters in a large contingent and demanded the party workers to remove the barricades which they claimed were illegal.

The raid was untimely in contrast to the routine morning raids the police often conducts in similar cases.

The police around 11:20 am opened straight firing over the crowd while others used various tactics to disperse the crowds, like firing tear gas and charging with batons. With the police firing weapons directly into the crowd of protesters, 14 protesters died at the scene while around 100 protesters were gravely injured.