The Auditor General of Pakistan has declared the agreement between the Islamabad Traffic Police and the National Police Foundation for the collection and retention of e-challan service charges to be unauthorised, identifying multiple procedural and regulatory violations in how the arrangement was structured and executed.
The audit report found that the Islamabad Traffic Police issued 740,796 tickets to traffic violators, imposing fines worth Rs. 617.85 million through the e-challan system. The National Police Foundation was brought in as a technical partner to upgrade the web portal and e-challan application intended to improve services for traffic violators, but the arrangement went beyond a purely technical role. Auditors found that the National Police Foundation was collecting service charges directly from violators on each transaction, a function for which it holds no legal authorisation. Unlike the National Bank of Pakistan, the National Police Foundation is not a financial institution and does not hold a digital banking or digital financial services licence from the State Bank of Pakistan, making its collection of financial charges from the public outside its permitted scope of activity.
Beyond the National Police Foundation’s lack of authorisation to collect financial charges, the audit identified two additional procedural violations. The agreement was concluded without obtaining concurrence from the Finance Division, which is required for arrangements of this nature involving the collection and retention of public funds. The contract was also awarded without open competition, in direct violation of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority Rules 2004, which mandate transparent competitive bidding for government contracts rather than allowing direct award to a preferred party.
The audit report further found that Rs. 617.23 million deposited under Head C-02638 during fiscal year 2024-25 through the e-challan system had not been subject to monthly reconciliation with the Federal Treasury Office, a requirement under financial rules that ensures collected government funds are accurately accounted for and traceable. Auditors have called for immediate submission of reconciliation records and the establishment of regular monthly reconciliation going forward. In response to the findings, auditors recommended replacing the current arrangement through a competitive bidding process with Finance Division approval. Officials from both the capital police and the National Police Foundation either declined to comment or did not respond when approached.
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