Why has KP police Chief Akhtar Hayat been removed from his position?

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Inspector General of Police (IGP), Akhtar Hayat Gandapur, has been removed from his position and replaced by Zulfiqar Hameed. While no specific reason was given for his removal, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government in the province had been calling for a change in leadership since taking office.

In this regards, two separate notifications issued by the federal government confirmed the change. As per the first notification Akhtar Hayat was asked to report to the Establishment Division, while the other announced the appointment of Zulfiqar Hameed as the new IGP of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Zulfiqar Hameed is currently serving as the Additional IG of the Special Branch in Punjab.

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Akhtar Hayat Gandapur, a BPS-21 officer, was appointed as IGP of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in February 2023, succeeding Moazzam Jah Ansari.

During the interim period, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa administration had proposed three senior police officers—Akhtar Hayat Gandapur, Saeed Wazir, and Dr. Sohail Habib Tajik—to the federal government and the Establishment Division for consideration as the new IGP.