Officers sacrifice promotions to retain posts

Revenue officers decline Grade-17 promotions to retain Sub-Registrar posts, prompting CM intervention In Sindh's bureaucracy, some chairs are apparently harder to leave than they are to win. For dozens of Revenue Department officers, the allure of a coveted posting has been strong enough to make them hold on to their seats-even when a higher grade was on offer. The issue of merit-based appointments in Sindh's government departments has reached a point where officers are competing for "good positions", while those already occupying such posts are unwilling to relinquish them even at the cost of promotions. Recently, 63 officers serving as Sub-Registrars in the Revenue Department surprised officials by agreeing to forgo their promotion to the next grade in order to remain in their existing positions. The officers were due to be promoted from Grade 15 to Grade 17. Their promotion had been approved at a meeting of the Departmental Promotion Committee chaired by Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah in May 2026. However, the 63 officers subsequently submitted written requests to the Revenue Department stating that they did not want to be promoted. Surprisingly, the department accepted their requests. The Revenue Department issued a notification on August 25, 2026, containing the names of all 63 officers. It stated that their requests to decline promotion had been approved. Under the relevant rules, officers who declined promotion during the promotion exercise would not be eligible for promotion for the next four years. Despite this, all 63 officers were apparently willing to accept the consequences of foregoing their promotions. The matter later went viral on social media, prompting Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah to take notice. Following the chief minister's intervention, the Revenue Department issued another notification on August 27, withdrawing the earlier notification that had approved the officers' requests to decline promotion. Despite the embarrassment caused to the government, there has so far been no information about disciplinary action against any official responsible for accepting the officers' requests. The Express Tribune contacted the spokesperson for the Chief Minister's House regarding the matter, but no response was received. The development has raised questions about the circumstances that led 63 officers to prefer remaining as Sub-Registrars over receiving promotion to Grade 17, as well as the department's decision to accept their requests despite the apparent implications under the promotion rules. Sub-Registrars in the Revenue Department are responsible for registering documents relating to immovable property. Their duties include scrutinising and registering legal documents concerning the sale and purchase, mortgage, lease and transfer of land and other property. They are also responsible for verifying the identities of the parties involved, confirming their consent and signatures on documents, maintaining registered documents and records, issuing certified copies and collecting registration fees and other government revenues. The episode has also highlighted broader concerns surrounding appointments and postings in Sindh's government departments, where officers often seek postings to positions considered more desirable or financially attractive.